out.

"Where have you heard that, Maezli?" the mother said, quite frightened.
She already saw the moment before her when Maezli would tell the district
attorney's wife that new appellation. "You must never use that
expression any more, Maezli. You see, nobody would be able to know what
you mean. Kurt invented it apparently when Apollonie spoke about having
so much to swallow. He should not have said it. Do you understand,
Maezli, that you must not say it any more?"

"Yes, but why is anyone allowed to spoil Apollonie's Sunday peace?" Maezli
persevered. Apollonie was her special friend, whom she wanted to keep
from harm.

"No one should do it, Maezli," the mother replied. It is wrong to spoil
anybody's Sunday peace and no one should do it."

"But our good God should quickly call down, 'Don't do it, don't do it!'
Then they would know that they were not allowed," was Maezli's opinion.

"He does it, Maezli! He does it every time anybody does wrong," said the
mother, "for the evil-doer always hears such a voice that calls out to
him: 'Don't do it, don't do it!' But sometimes he does it in spite of the
voice. Even young children like you, Maezli, hear the voice when they
feel like doing wrong, and they do wrong just the same."

"I only wonder why God does not punish them right away; He ought to do
that," Maezli eagerly replied.

"But He does," said the mother. As soon as anybody has done wrong, he
feels a great weight on his heart so that he keeps on thinking, 'I wish I
hadn't done it!' Then our good God is good and merciful to him and does
not punish him further. He gives him plenty of time to come to Him and
tell Him how sorry he is to have done wrong. God gives him the chance to
beg His pardon. But if he does not do that, he is sure to be punished so
that he will do more and more evil and become more terribly unhappy all
the time."

"I'll look out, too, now if I can hear the voice," was Maezli's
resolution.

"The chief thing is to follow the voice, Maezli," said the mother. "But
we must be quiet now. Say your prayers, darling, then you will soon go
to sleep."

Maezli said her little prayer very devoutly. As there was nothing more to
trouble her, she lay down and was half asleep as soon as her mother
closed the door behind her.

She was still expected at four other little beds. Every one of the
children had a problem to bring to her, but there was so little time left
to-day that they had to be put off till to-