ssure you we _do_ have a time with
it sometimes."

The tea began merrily, and just in the middle of it the door opened,
and James Seton's sunburnt face looked in. He carried a basket which
Bobbie pounced upon eagerly, for he knew it contained the
long-expected guinea-pigs.

Behind Jim stood a little woe-begone creature in a ragged dress, her
head covered by a large crumpled sun-bonnet. The tears were rolling
down her face, and in her hand she held the bottom of a broken glass
medicine bottle.

"Look here, grandmother," said Jim, "I picked up this unfort'net
little mortal just outside the Lodge gates. She'd been into town to
buy some lotion for her sick mother, and she went and fell up against
a stone, and smashed her bottle; and now she's in a terrible state of
mind about it."

The little girl was still crying bitterly; and Bobbie, who was very
tender-hearted, furtively wiped his eyes with the back of his hand,
and looked hard out of the window.

"Sit you down, child, and have some tea. You're fair worn out with
misery," said Mrs. Funnel kindly. "After that we'll think of what's to
be done. How much did the medicine cost, child?"

"Two shillings," said the child, with a fresh burst of sobbing.

Bobbie discovered, to his great annoyance, that two large tears had
fallen down his own cheeks out of sympathy; and at the same moment he
seemed to feel his little wash-leather purse growing so large, that he
almost fancied in another moment it would burst out of his pocket.

Exactly two shillings were in it--the price of the bottle of lotion,
or of two of Jim's guinea-pigs! Which should it be?

"If only I hadn't bought Maria's collar last Monday, I could have got
you a bottle _easily_," cried Jerry, in great distress. "I've only
twopence-halfpenny left, but _do_ take it. Oh, you poor little girl, I
_am_ so sorry for you!"

Bobbie felt very guilty, and his money seemed to weigh upon him like
lead. He watched the attractive brown guinea-pigs--who had been let
out of their basket--gambol about the parlour. His mind was a chaos.

Suddenly he snatched out his purse, and thrust the two shillings into
the little girl's hand, before she could say anything.

"Get the medicine, please," he said, in a gruff voice. "I don't want
the guinea-pigs, thank you, Jim." And opening the door hurriedly, he
darted off across the park towards home.

CHAPTER IV.

"I do think it was one of the goodest things I ever heard of," said
Je