nor no
pa'sons nuther," she added.

As these last dreadful words passed Kettles' lips the dean, rosy and
smiling, went by on the other side arm in arm with another clergyman.
Could he have heard them? He gave a look of surprise at the group as he
took off his hat. Poor Miss Unity felt quite unnerved by this unlucky
accident, and hardly knew what to say next.

"But--" she stammered, "that isn't kind or--or nice, of your father,
when they want to come and see you and do you good."

"Father says he doesn't want doing good to," said Kettles, shutting her
lips with a snap.

Miss Unity felt incapable of dealing further with Kettles' father. She
changed the subject hurriedly.

"What have you in that bottle?" she asked. "It would be better to spend
your money on bread."

"Oils to rub mother with," answered Kettles with a pinched smile; then
with a business-like air she added, "I can't stop talking no longer,
she's alone 'cept the children. If the baby was to crawl into the fire
she couldn't move to stop him, not if he was burnt ever so."

Without further leave-taking she dived down the dark alley at a run, her
big boots clattering on the flag-stones.

Pennie felt very glad to have met and talked to Kettles at last, and as
she and her godmother went on, she made up her mind to write to Nancy
that very night and tell her all about it; also to write a long
description of the meeting in her diary. She was just putting this into
suitable words when Miss Unity spoke.

"I have thought of something, Pennie, that would be nice for you to do
for that little girl--Keturah her name is, I think."

"She's never called by it," said Pennie. "Don't you think Kettles suits
her best, and it's far easier to say."

"Not to me!" answered Miss Unity. "I do not like the name at all. But
what I want to suggest is this; you are anxious to do something for her,
are you not?"

"I told you about it, you know," said Pennie seriously. "Nancy and I
mean to collect for some boots and stockings. Did you see her boots? I
should think they must have been her father's, shouldn't you?"

"I don't wish to think about her father in any way," said Miss Unity
with a slight shudder, "but I should like to do something for the poor
mother and the little girl. Now it seems to me that we could not do
better than make her a set of underlinen. I would buy the material,
Betty would cut out the clothes from patterns of yours, and you and I
would ma