aid. "She
will sit next to me."

"All right, Miss Rose," answered Jane, carefully filling the last
yellow bowl.

"Please may I ring the bell tonight, Miss Rose?" asked Sally, who
had been helping Jane.

Miss Rose looked at the table. Every slice of bread and every cookie
was in place.

"Yes, dear; your work is well done. You may ring."

At the sound of the supper bell, a tramping of many feet sounded in
the long hall.

The doors of the dining room were opened, and Mrs. Snow came in,
followed by a double line of little girls.

Each girl knew just where to find her place, and stood waiting for
the signal to sit.

A teacher stood at the head of each table, and beside Miss Rose was
the little stranger.

Mrs. Snow was the housemother. She asked the blessing, while every
little girl bowed her head.

Clematis stared about at the other children all this time, and
wondered what they were doing.

Now they were seated, and each girl buttoned her bib in place before
she tasted her supper.

Sally sat next to Clematis.

"They gave you a bath, didn't they?" she said, as she put her bread
into her bowl.

Clematis nodded.

"And you got a nice clean apron like ours, didn't you?"

Clematis nodded again.

"Oh, see her hair, it's lovely!" sighed a little girl across the
table, who had short, straight hair.

Clematis' soft brown curls were neatly brushed, and tied with a dark
red ribbon.

She did not look much like the child who came in an hour before.

"What's her name?" asked Jane, looking at Miss Rose.

"We'll ask her tomorrow. Now stop talking please, so she can eat her
supper."

At that, the little girl looked up at Miss Rose and said: "My name
is Clematis, and my kitty's name is Deborah."

Just as she said this, a very strange noise was heard. Every child
stopped eating. Miss Rose turned red, and Mrs. Snow looked up in
surprise.

"Miew, miew, miew," came from under the table. In another minute a
little head peeped over the edge of the table where Clematis sat. It
was a kitten, with a black spot over one eye.

"Miew, miew," Deborah continued, and stuck her little red tongue
right into the yellow bowl. She was very hungry, and could wait no
longer.

[Illustration: Deborah was very hungry]

Mrs. Snow rapped on the table, for every child laughed right out.
What fun it was! No one had ever seen a cat in there before.

"Miss Rose, will you kindly put that cat out. Put her out the front
door." Mrs. S