re very tottlish, and fell down
at the slightest provocation.

That would never do, so she set her wits to work to provide standards.

She took an old broom handle, and sawed it into thin slices.

When she had thirty-two of these slices, she covered them neatly with
pieces of old black broadcloth, glued on, over top, edge, and all.
Then she dipped the feet of each china personage into the hot, stiff
glue, and held it in place till the glue set.

They would stick nicely, and stand up as straight as any chessmen.

Then she drew the long robes into folds, just touched with glue, and
festooned to the standard so as not to get out of place.

When the whole set was done, Lottie was delighted; and, indeed, they
were extremely pretty.

Every night, when May and her father would get out the old set, made
of button moulds, with the name printed on with ink, Lottie would
think what a surprise there would be.

But she was not done with plans.

May had a picture, a delicate pencil-sketch of her mother, the only
likeness they had. It was the sick girl's treasure. Too careful of it
to allow it to hang on the wall and get soiled, she kept it in an old
book under her pillow, and to take it out and look at it every day was
her delight. Now Lottie planned to make a frame for this treasure.

On pretense of looking at it, she took its dimensions, and then went
to work. Cutting a piece of cardboard of the right size, she proceeded
to cover it with little bunches of grasses she had dried in the
summer, standing up in vases so that they drooped gracefully. At the
top, where the stems of the grasses met, she placed a bunch of
bitter-sweet berries, the brilliant red and orange just the needed bit
of color to perfect the whole.

It was laid away in a chest with the chessmen, ready to receive the
picture.

And now she began to plan for the adornment of the tree.

Candles were the greatest anxiety, but with the help of Nancy, she
made a few large ones into twenty as neat and pretty little "dips" as
you ever saw.

Walnuts she ornamented with gilt bands and loops to be hung by;
apples, the reddest and whitest, were similarly prepared; tiny
cornucopias, made of white letter paper trimmed with bits of
gilt, filled with popped corn and meats of butternuts nicely
picked out; dainty baskets made of old match-boxes, covered
with gay paper, and with festooned handles; gorgeous pink and
white roses of paper; tiny cakes of maple sugar, delic