charge, put her into one of Harry's nightdresses,
tucked her up into Harry's bed, and turned her attention to the frock
and hat, and when they were hanging on the line, pink and damp, she
cleared up the room and wished Jim would make haste and come home. She
wanted to get her explanations to him over before she fetched Harry
and the baby.

But no Jim came, and at last she went downstairs and knocked at a
neighbour's door.

"I say," she said, "I wish you'd fetch my baby and the brat from the
Nursery for me. My husband's not in yet, and I've brought my sister's
child home along of me for a few days, and he don't know a word about
it. If he was to come in while I was out, he might be putting the
child outside in the street."

"I'll go," said the woman carelessly. "My word, Jane Adams, but I
thought you hated children!"

"So I do!" answered Jane fiercely, "but he _would_ have his sister's,
now it's my turn for _my_ sister's!"

As she turned up the stairs her own words came back to her with a
sudden qualm. Her sister's child! What about Tom?

He would know that this was not his sister's child--he might even know
whose child it was, for he must probably have seen it with Pattie!

But even as the disquieting thought came, a reassuring one followed.
Tom was gone away for a month on a special job for his master, and
long before that time had elapsed, Pattie would be dismissed and the
child could be returned.

Jim did not come home till very late, and when he did, he was more
than half intoxicated, and he accepted Jane's story without demur,
indeed he scarcely listened to what she said; and as the little girl
was still asleep when he went to work in the morning, he really had no
idea that there was any addition to his family circle.

Harry was enchanted with a playmate so pretty, so gentle, so near his
own age. He wanted to take her to walk in the street to show her off,
but Jane promptly boxed his ears and forbade any such thing, on pain
of terrific wrath, so Harry contented himself with offering her every
toy he possessed, and Maud accepted his attentions like a little
queen, and was really quite happy, except when she thought of her
mother or Denys. But always there was the same answer to her pleadings
to go home.

"To-morrow--to-morrow--if you don't cry."

So the days passed on. Each day Jim drank more and more heavily as he
ceased to resist the temptation, and it took stronger hold upon him,
and each day Jane