at Dick, who had seated himself at a short distance, and
was returning the salute.

"Would--wouldn't you like to tell me about these letters, please?" said
Tiny, holding out her paper to Polly.

"Well, that's a rum way of asking," said Harry, with a laugh. "Suppose
she wouldn't now, little 'un," he added.

"Then she mustn't," said Tiny, stoutly; though the tears welled up to
her eyes at the thought of all her hopes being overthrown just when they
seemed about to be realised.

"Don't, Harry; what a tease you are!" said his sister. "I should like to
tell you, dear," she added, in a patronising tone. "Come and sit down
here, and tell me what you want."

"It's what you want; don't forget that, Polly, else she'll get her back
up, and go off again," laughed her brother; but he was not sorry the
embargo had been taken off their intercourse with the fisherman's
family; for although he had had surreptitious dealings with boys
sometimes, they had to be so watchful lest they should be discovered
that the play was considerably hindered. Now he understood that this
advance on Tiny's part was a direct concession from Coomber himself, for
he and the boys had long ago agreed to try and draw the little girl into
some intimacy as the only way of breaking down the restrictions laid
upon them. But Tiny had proved obstinate. She had been asked again and
again, but she had always returned the same answer: "Daddy would let her
some day, and then she would play with them." So Harry Hayes was
perfectly aware that she had won the fisherman's consent at last,
although no word had been said about it.

When the girls were left to themselves, Polly took up the picture and
looked at it, then turned it over and read, "God is good to all: He
loves both boys and girls." At this point Tiny interrupted her by laying
her hand on her arm, and saying eagerly: "Are you quite sure that is
what it says?"

"Why, don't you think I can read?" said Polly, in a half-offended tone.
But the subject was new to her, and so she was anxious to read further,
and turned to the page again and read on. At the bottom was a line or
two in smaller print, and Polly read these longer words with a touch of
pride: "Jesus said, Suffer the little children to come unto Me, and
forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God."

"Then this must be Jesus, and these are the little children," concluded
Polly, as she turned over the paper to look at the picture again.

The two