on lady sing vot have come fon Italy; my fader go mit her dare.
And von time ze lady come to my moder's house, and ce sing to ze harp,
and ce sing to ze piano, and my moder and my fader sing mit her; and ce
stay dare to ze supper, and much peoples come to ze supper."

I remained with Little Jakey that night, and when all were still, and
the night taper was glimmering faintly through the room, I felt his
little hand pull mine, as if he would draw me closer to him.

"What, dear?" I said, stooping over him.

"I tink I die," he whispered; "I tink I go im Himmel mit my moder, and
mit ze baby, and mit Meme."

"Why, Jakey," I asked, coaxingly, "what makes you think so?"

"Vy, ven ze baby die, ce be sick; and ven my moder die, ce be sick; and
ven Meme die, ce be sick; and I be sick, and I tink I die."

"So you are, very sick indeed, dear Jakey," I said; "but you will not be
sorry to die, will you, dear?"

"No, I not sorry; but all ze time I tink, How vill it be? Ven Gott take
me im Himmel, vill he come mit me in ze leetle boat? zen vill he come
mit me in ze big boat, mit ze big fire? and zen vill he come in ze big
ship, mit ze tree vay high, and mit ze sail? and ven ze vinds blow too
hard, and ze ship come crash on ze rock, and all ze peoples cry, vill
Gott hold me tight in hees arms, like my moder?"

"Yes, you dear, dear child," I said, "God will surely keep you close in
his arms always, and when you come where he is, dear Jakey, your sweet
eyes will have the light in them. You will see the stars then, and the
angels, and all the good people who have gone to heaven from this world,
and God, and his dear Son, Jesus. You know about him, do you not? He
loves little children."

"Yes, I know him," he said; "my moder have tell me dot von time he have
come fon Himmel in ze vorld, and ze wicked men have kill him; zey have
nail him to ze tree; and my moder say dot Jazu be ze Lord, and dot he
love ze little children, and von time he have lif zem in hees arms; and
he say dot he love zem all, and dot he vill bring zem im Himmel mit him,
ven zey bees good. Meme ce know him too, and much times ce talk mit him
in ze prayer vot ce say; and ce say dot he hear her, ce know he do. Ze
good man know him, and much he talk mit him in ze Meeting; but to ze
table he not talk, he tink mit him, mit hees hands so (crossing his own
little ones, as if in the act of devotion). Georgy do dot vay, and
Franky, and zey all; and Mary tell me, and I do d