being back before it was prepared,
and to the incident of the buns and bread-and-butter meal never being
found out by her? After all, she had told them they would get no food
until the washing was all done, and no one could have guessed that she
would have changed her mind within so short a time; and there was no real
harm in Bella's putting them in the way of getting something to eat when
they were so very hungry.

So poor Bella argued and argued with herself, her courage sinking lower
with every preparation her aunt made. If only Miss Hender had been a
little kinder to Bella, if only she had taught her to trust, and not to
fear, her, Bella would have explained then and there, and all would have
blown over.

While Bella was thinking it all out and trying to make up her mind what
she should do, she was standing idle--and that, to begin with, was not the
way to please and pacify her aunt, tired as she was with long hours of
hard work, exhausted from want of food, with her back aching, and her feet
throbbing with long standing on the stone floor. If only Bella had made
her a cup of tea and got the simple meal ready while she sat and rested a
little, what a relief it would have been, and what good it would have done
her, but her own temper prevented that. For one thing, Bella would not
have dared to touch anything without being told she might, and, for
another, she was so frightened now at the thought of what she had done and
of her aunt's probable anger, that she stood absorbed and perplexed,
and did not even do the things she might have done.

Naturally the weary woman grew irritated by such thoughtlessness.
"I don't know how long you expect me to wait on you!" she said tartly,
"while you stand by, too lazy even to do the little you know how to.
Go and draw a jug of water this minute, and tell the children to wash
their hands. I s'pose you're capable of doing that much."

Bella, still without explaining, took the jug and went out to the pump.
By the time she came back her aunt had cut off several slices of cold
bacon and put some on four plates, one for each of them. Bella felt
perfectly ill with fear when she saw these preparations.

"Aunt Emma!" she began, but so tremulously that her aunt did not hear her.

"Where are the children? Didn't you tell them?" demanded Miss Hender
tartly.

"They aren't there," stammered Bella nervously, "they haven't come
back----"

"Back from where?"--Bella's manner struck Mi