o a very poor family,
and as she was the eldest of a number of children, her mother thought
she could not spare her to attend school.

From the windows of her chamber, Miss Grant often saw Hitty sitting on
the doorstep, holding a large baby in her arms. She noticed that Hitty
was always kind to her baby brother; that she sung to him, let him pull
her long hair, and never became impatient or fretful with him. All this
interested the kind teacher in the child, and she longed to be of some
use to her.

One day, when she was returning from her school, she overtook Hitty, who
was carrying a heavy basket of potatoes. "Let me help you," said the
teacher, taking hold of the handle.

As they walked along, Miss Grant asked, "Did you ever go to school?"

"No, ma'am," said Hitty; "though I staid in a house once where the
lady's son taught me my letters."

"Should you like to learn?" asked the teacher.

"O, yes, ma'am; sure I should be proud if I could read; but mother has
so much work, and Bobby takes kindly to me, so that she can't spare me
to go to school."

"I should think it could be planned somehow for you to learn," said
Miss Grant, kindly. "I will go in and see your mother this evening."

She did so, and talked with Mrs. Moran of the advantage it would be to
Hitty, if she could learn to read and write.

"Only think," said the lady, "she could teach her brothers their
letters, and read them pretty stories to keep them quiet while you are
busy at work."

"Feth, ma'am, sure, and I've sinse enough to see the truth of what
you're saying," said the poor mother. "Her father often gets a paper
from the ould country; but it's little use to us, you see, because the
spelling and the pronouncing are quite beyont him. I've often enough
wished we could have the luck to give one of the childer an education."

"Can't you spare her to go to school a part of the time?"

"Sure, ma'am, and that's the trouble intirely. The teachers complain
when the childer don't be regular."

Just at this moment one of the children fell down, and began to cry so
loud, that Miss Grant took her leave. She was in earnest about doing
something for Hitty; and she walked as far as Mrs. Gray's, to ask her
advice about it.

"Why don't you allow her to attend your school?" inquired the lady.
"One hour in the day would be better than nothing."

"I should be glad to do so, if I thought the parents would not object,"
answered the teacher. "I think with a