of poverty, to gather sympathy?

"Mrs. Miller"--she had ceased weeping, and as he spoke, she looked at
him, with the tear-stains still on her agitated face, half ashamed that
he had seen her--"Mrs. Miller, I am sorry. This shall be remedied. Don't
tell me it shan't! Don't! I say it shall! Mrs. Miller, I'm--I'm ashamed
of myself. I am, indeed."

"I am very grateful, sir, I'm sure," said she; "but we don't like to
take charity though we need help; but we can get along now, sir--for, I
suppose I must keep it, as you say you didn't send it, and use it for
the children's sake, and thank God for his good mercy--since I don't
know, and never shall, where it came from, now."

"Mrs. Miller," he said quickly, "you spoke in this way before; and I
don't know what you refer to. What do you mean by--_it_?"

"Oh! I forgot sir: it puzzles me so. You see, sir, I was sitting here
after I got home from your house, thinking what I should do, when Mrs.
Flanagan came up-stairs with a letter for me, that she said a strange
man left at the door for Mrs. Miller; and Mrs. Flanagan couldn't
describe him well, or understandingly; and it had no direction at all,
only the man inquired who was the landlord, and if Mrs. Miller had a
sick child, and then said the letter was for me; and there was no
writing inside the letter, but there was fifty dollars. That's all, sir.
It gave me a great shock, sir; and I couldn't think who sent it, only
when you came to-night, I thought it was you; but you said it wasn't,
and I never shall know who it was, now. It seems as if the hand of God
was in it, sir, for it came when everything was darkest, and I was in
despair."

"Why, Mrs. Miller," he slowly answered, "this is very mysterious. The
man inquired if I was the owner of the house--oh! no--he only inquired
who was--but then he knew I was the--oh! bother! I'm getting nowhere.
Let's see. Why, it must be some one you know, or that knows your
circumstances."

"But there's no one knows them but yourself; and I told you," she
replied; "no one else but the people in the house. It must have been
some rich person, for the letter was a gilt-edge sheet, and there was
perfume in it, sir."

"Strange," he murmured. "Well, I give it up. All is, I advise you to
keep it, and I'm very glad some one did his duty by you in your hour of
need, though I'm sorry it was not myself. Here's Mrs. Flanagan."

There was a good deal done, and a great burden lifted off an humble
heart-