ehead, and he knew that she must be
crying.

"My own darling little mamma," said Arthur, "I love you with my whole
heart. Oh, you don't know how very much I love you!" and he gave a deep,
weary sigh.

She put her arm round him, and pressed him very closely to her heart; and
he felt as if he were a tired little baby, and that it was very nice to
have his mother's arm around him. By and by he began crying; not with a
hard, passionate feeling, but in a weak, weary way, the tears flowing down
one after another over his mother's hands.

"My dear child," said Mr. Vivyan, as the time came nearer for Arthur to go
to bed, "you don't know what it is to your mother and to me to leave you;
but we hope you will be happy by and by, for your aunt will be very kind
to you, and will love you very much. She lives in a very nice part of the
country. You may be sure, Arthur, we should be quite certain that every
one would be kind to you."

"Do you mean that I am to live with some other person?" asked Arthur
listlessly.

"Yes, with my sister; that is, your aunt."

It did not seem to matter very much to Arthur just then where he was
going, or what was to become of him. He knew his father and mother were
going away, and that he was to be left all alone, quite alone it seemed to
him, and a very desolate, forlorn feeling fell over his heart, and seemed
to make him feel numbed and heavy.

"Good night, my own dear mother," said Arthur, as he took his candle. He
was not crying, and there was almost a little wan smile on his face as he
said it, making him look very different from the bright, joyous boy who
generally threw his arms around her neck with an embrace, which was most
emphatic as well as affectionate. He did not know how her heart was aching
for him, and he knew still less of the pain his father felt, but could not
show.

As Arthur sunk on his knees that night by the side of his little bed where
the firelight was brightening and glowing, a deep sob came up from the
very depths of his heart; and when he tried to pray, all he could say was,
"O God, take care of me; for there is nobody else."

Arthur knew what it was to have put his trust in the Saviour of the world,
but hitherto everything had been so bright, and things had come and gone
so smoothly, that he had not thought much about Him. He stayed awake a
very long time, waiting to see if his mother would come and talk to him,
as she very often did when there was anything to sa