ring lips, my hand still in Darry's, who on his part was
speechless with sympathy.

"De time pass quick, and Miss Daisy see her pa'," he said at last.

I did not think the time passed quick. I said so.

"Do little missie ask de Lord for help?" Darry said, his eyes by this
time as watery as mine. "Do Miss Daisy know, it nebber lonesome where
de Lord be? He so good."

I could not stand any more. I pulled away my hand and stood still,
looking out of the window and seeing nothing, till I could make myself
quiet. Then I changed the subject and told Darry I should like to go
and see some of the other houses again. I know now, I can see, looking
back, how my childish self-control and reserve made some of those
impulsive natures around me regard me with something like worshipful
reverence. I felt it then, without thinking of it or reasoning about
it. From Darry, and from Margaret, and from Mammy Theresa, and from
several others, I had a loving, tender reverence, which not only felt
for me as a sorrowful child, but bowed before me as something of
higher and stronger nature than themselves. Darry silently attended
me now from house to house of the quarters; introducing and explaining
and doing all he could to make my progress interesting and amusing.
Interested I was; but most certainly not amused. I did not like the
look of things any better than I had done at first. The places were
not "nice;" there was a coarse, uncared-for air of everything within,
although the outside was in such well-dressed condition. No litter on
the grass, no untidiness of walls or chimneys; and no seeming of
comfortable homes when the door was opened. The village, for it
amounted to that, was almost deserted at that hour; only a few
crooning old women on the sunny side of a wall, and a few half-grown
girls, and a quantity of little children, depending for all the care
they got upon one or the other of these.

"Haven't all these little babies got mothers!" I asked.

"For sure, Miss Daisy--dey's got modders."

"Where _are_ the mothers of all these babies, Darry?" I asked.

"Dey's in de field, Miss Daisy. Home d'rectly."

"Are they working like _men_ in the fields!" I asked.

"Dey's all at work," said Darry.

"Do they do the same work as the men?"

"All alike, Miss Daisy." Darry's answers were not hearty.

"But don't their little babies want them?" said I, looking at a group
of girls in whose hands were some very little babies indeed. I thin