e sick-beds, of quiet endurance of
pain, of many a day of hunger and cold, and of a thousand deeds of
unselfish love for other people; but, of course, they could not read
this strange handwriting. They only knew that she was old and wrinkled,
and that she stooped as she walked. None of them seemed to fear her,
for her smile was always cheerful, and she had a kindly word for each
of them if they chanced to meet her on her way to and from the village.
With this old, old woman lived a very little girl. So bright and happy
was she that the travellers who passed by the lonesome little house on
the edge of the forest often thought of a sunbeam as they saw her.
These two people were known in the village as Granny Goodyear and Little
Gretchen.

The winter had come and the frost had snapped off many of the smaller
branches from the pine-trees in the forest. Gretchen and her Granny were
up by daybreak each morning. After their simple breakfast of oatmeal,
Gretchen would run to the little closet and fetch Granny's old woollen
shawl, which seemed almost as old as Granny herself. Gretchen always
claimed the right to put the shawl over her Granny's head, even though
she had to climb onto the wooden bench to do it. After carefully pinning
it under Granny's chin, she gave her a good-bye kiss, and Granny started
out for her morning's work in the forest. This work was nothing more nor
less than the gathering up of the twigs and branches which the autumn
winds and winter frosts had thrown upon the ground. These were carefully
gathered into a large bundle which Granny tied together with a strong
linen band. She then managed to lift the bundle to her shoulder and
trudged off to the village with it. Here she sold the fagots for
kindling wood to the people of the village. Sometimes she would get only
a few pence each day, and sometimes a dozen or more, but on this money
little Gretchen and she managed to live; they had their home, and the
forest kindly furnished the wood for the fire which kept them warm in
cold weather.

In the summer time Granny had a little garden at the back of the hut
where she raised, with little Gretchen's help, a few potatoes and
turnips and onions. These she carefully stored away for winter use. To
this meagre supply, the pennies, gained by selling the twigs from the
forest, added the oatmeal for Gretchen and a little black coffee for
Granny. Meat was a thing they never thought of having. It cost too much
money. St