noways
afraid of her, and that she should certainly wait her coming back.

Bella ran directly to her governess, and begged she would give her some
currant jelly for a little girl, who had nothing but dry bread for
breakfast. The governess, being highly pleased with the good-nature of
her amiable pupil, gave her some in a cup, and a small roll also. Bella
instantly ran away with it, and coming to Marian, said she hoped she had
not made her wait, but begged her to put down her brown bread till
another time, and eat what she had brought her.

Marian, after tasting the jelly, and smacking her lips, said it was very
nice indeed; and asked Bella if she ate such every day. Miss replied,
that she ate those things frequently, and if she would come now and
then, she would always give her some.

They now became very familiar together, and Miss Bella asked Marian a
number of questions, such as, whether she never was sick, seeing her now
look so hearty, and in what manner she employed her time.

Marian replied, she did not know what it was to be sick; and, as to her
employments, in winter she went to get straw for the cow, and dry sticks
to make the pot boil; in summer she went to weed the corn; and, in
harvest-time, to glean and pull hops. In short, they were never at a
loss for work; and she said her mother would make a sad noise, if any of
her little ones should take it into their heads to be lazy.

Miss Bella, observing that her little visitor went barefooted, which
much surprised her, was induced to ask the reason of it; when Marian
replied, that it would be too expensive for their father to think of
finding shoes and stockings for them all, and therefore none of them had
any; but they found no inconvenience from it, since time had so hardened
the bottoms of their feet, as to make shoes unnecessary.

The time having slipped away in this kind of chit-chat, Marian told Miss
Bella that she must be going, in order to gather some greens for her
cow, who would want her breakfast by eight o'clock. This little girl did
not eat up all her roll and jelly, but saved some part of it to carry
home to her youngest sister, who, she said, she was sure would be very
fond of it. Bella was vastly pleased to find Marian was so tender of her
sister, and desired she would not fail to come again at the same hour
the next morning. So, after a mutual good b'ye, they separated for the
present.

Miss Bella had now, for the first time, tasted the