ready to cry over the miseries of the poor little India girl.

"Of course there are many cruel parents--heathenism, you know, does not
teach people to be kind and loving--but many love their children as much
as your parents love you. In fact they are over-indulgent to them, and
let them do just what they please when they are small. And you may
imagine that the mother especially has a very sore heart when her little
daughter is taken from her and when she hears of her being ill-treated
in her new home. But it is considered a disgrace if girls are not
married when mere children; and a loving mother wishes to keep her
daughters from disgrace."

"And how if the little girl's husband dies?" Rosa Stevenson inquired.

"Oh, then the poor little widow leads a miserable life."

"Why, how?" Marty asked. "Can't she go back home then?"

"No," Miss Walsh answered. "She has to live on in the father-in-law's
house, where she is treated shamefully, made to do hard work, is half
starved, and not allowed clothes enough to keep her comfortable. She is
not taken care of when sick, and is treated worse in every way than you
have any idea of or ever can have."

"It's perfectly dreadful!" declared one of the girls.

"Didn't they use to burn the widows on their husbands' funeral pile?"
asked another.

"Yes, but the British Government put a stop to that."

"I believe I'd rather be burnt up and done with it than have to lead
such a miserable life," said Mary Cresswell.

"Oh, no, it would be dreadful to be burnt," said Rosa.

"Seems to me it's dreadful all around," said Marty, sighing.

"You may be thankful you don't have to make the choice," said Miss
Walsh.

"Then the poor children are not even made comfortable when they go to
school," Rosa went on, "so dirty and forlorn!"

"How queerly they're dressed," said Hannah Morton.

"They seem to be dressed principally in earrings and bracelets,"
remarked Marty.

"Miss Agnes," inquired Mary, "aren't there other kinds of schools
besides these little day-schools?"

"Oh, yes. One of the first things that the missionaries try to do is to
establish boarding-schools, so as to get the boys and girls altogether
away from the influence of their heathen homes. This is the way many
converts are made. There are now many such schools and much good has
been done by them. You remember we sent the extra ten dollars we had
last year to help build an addition to a boarding-school in China."

"Are Ch