long."

"Aunt Nellie will know now that she was named for her," said Belle.

"And perhaps," said Nannie, "she will teach her about everything there."
So they talked of heaven and heavenly things. The little baby's death
had not been in vain. Belle and Jack both thought more of another world
than they had ever done before, and in each a little voice whispered,
"Am I ready for heaven?"

CHAPTER V.

WHAT MADE THE DIFFERENCE?

"O Mother! Fanny Bell, and Mary Green, and ever so many of the girls,
are going into the woods to-morrow afternoon, and they want us to go
with them. May we, mother?" said Belle and Nannie together, as they came
running into the room where their mother was.

"I'll see about it," she said; "it will depend upon what kind of girls
you are."

"Oh, we'll be very good, mother, if you will let us go."

"We'll see," said their mother.

The morrow came, and with it the desired permission. Pretty early,
Nannie, who was on the watch, saw them coming, and called out to Belle,
"Here they are!" Belle ran out.

"Are you going?"

"Yes."

"Is Nannie?"

"Yes."

"Oh, I'm so glad Nannie's going," cried one voice and another. "Yes, I'm
so glad."

"I don't see," said Belle to herself, "why they should be so glad Nannie
is going. They don't seem to care about me at all."

With rather a cross tone of voice, she called to Nannie to make haste
and get ready.

Just as they were starting, Charlie came in, and seeing Nannie with her
bonnet on, he called out:--

"O Nannie, where are you going? I want you to show me the pictures in
your new book."

"I can't this afternoon, Charlie; I'm going into the woods."

"Oh, pshaw!" said Charlie; "I like so much better when you're at home."

"It does not make any difference to Charlie whether I'm at home or not,"
Belle said to herself.

When they started there was such a strife who should walk with Nannie,
that Belle was very nearly left to walk alone. Their walk led through
the pretty lane bordered with lime-trees, at the back of Dr. Merry's
house, then on past Grannie Burt's house, when it turned off into a
little path, across the field that was worn quite smooth by the boys
going nutting. This path brought you at last to a stile. Over this stile
they all climbed, and now were in the woods. What a beautiful wood it
was! The trees opened here and there to let in the sunlight, which
danced in and out among the green and yellow and russet brown leaves of