"What did you bring him home for, Joe?" asked Alexia, leaning over to
twitch Joel's arm.

"To plague you, Alexia," said Joel, with a twinkle in his black eyes.

"Oh, he doesn't bother me," said Alexia serenely. "Clem is having all
the trouble now. Well, we must put up with him, I suppose," she said
with resignation.

"You don't need to," said Joel coolly, "you can let us alone, Alexia."

"But I don't want to let you alone," said Alexia; "that's all boys are
good for, if they're in a party, to keep 'em stirred up. Goodness me,
Mr. King and Polly are getting out!" as the car stopped, and Grandpapa
led the way down the aisle.

When they arrived at the Corcoran house, which was achieved by dodging
around groups of untidy women gossiping with their neighbors, and
children playing on the dirty pavements, with the occasional detour
caused by a heap of old tin cans, and other debris, Mr. King drew a
long breath. "I don't know that I ought to have brought you young people
down here. It didn't strike me so badly before."

"But it's no worse for us to see it than for the people to live here,
father," said Jasper quickly.

"That's very true--but faugh!" and the old gentleman had great
difficulty to contain himself. "Well, thank fortune, the Corcoran family
are to move this week."

"Oh, Grandpapa," cried Polly, hopping up and down on the broken
pavement, and "Oh, father!" from Jasper.

"Polly Pepper," exclaimed Alexia, twitching her away, "you came near
stepping into that old mess of bones and things."

Polly didn't even glance at the garbage heap by the edge of the
sidewalk, nor give it a thought. "Oh, how lovely, Alexia," she cried,
"that they won't have but a day or two more here!"

"Well, we are going in," said Alexia, holding her tightly, "and I'm glad
of it, Polly. Oh, misery me!" as they followed Mr. King into the poor
little house that Jim the brakeman had called home.

The little widow, thanks to Mr. King and several others interested in
the welfare of the brakeman's family, had smartened up considerably, so
that neither she nor her dwelling presented such a dingy, woe-begone
aspect as on the previous visit. And old Mr. King, being very glad to
see this, still further heartened her up by exclaiming, "Well, Mrs.
Corcoran, you've accomplished wonders."

"I've tried to," cried the poor woman, "and I'm sure 'twas no more than
I ought to do, and you being so kind to me and mine, sir."

"Well, I've brought so