gloss, and to change her scheme of feeding the young lambs for
the Great Shepherd's sake into a mere struggle with tiresome, fidgety
children.

Still her hopes and her spirits rose again at church. She had her
expounding of the Sower on her mind, and hoped yet to deliver it when
she went to afternoon school; but there proved to be the Catechism and a
whole set of hymns to be said, and questions to be asked about them.
These questions did not come very readily to such an unpractised tongue
as hers, and she thought she could lead off into the discourse she had
thought out over the Bible. But she had hardly gone through twenty words
before she saw a squabble going on between Lily Bell and Mary Smithers,
and she had no sooner separated them, and taken up the thread of her
discourse about grace being sown and watered in our hearts, than Susan
Bray popped up up with "Please, teacher, it's time to read to us--Its
_Miss Angelina_," pointing to a little gay story-book.

"You should not be rude, and interrupt," said Jessie; whereupon Susan
pouted, the two idlest began to play with each other's fingers, and, as
soon as she paused to take breath, Lily Bell jumped up, and brought her
the book open.

She had to give up the point, and begin to read something that did not
seem to her nearly so improving as her own discourse, as it was all
about a doll left behind upon a heath; but the children listened to it
eagerly.

Was this all the good she was to do by sacrificing all her time on
Sunday? Like Grace, she felt much inclined to give it up, and all the
more when Florence Cray came into the work-room the next morning,
laughing and saying--

"Well, the impudence of some folk! There was that there little Bray! I
hear that she should say that Miss Hollis was put to teach her, and she
warn't agoing to care for one as wasn't a lady."

"I can make her mind me fast enough," said Amy.

"O, you are bred to be a teacher," said Florence; "that doesn't count.
Nobody else should trouble themselves with the tiresome little
ungrateful things. I'm sure I wouldn't; but then I don't set up for
goodness, nor want to be thought better than other folk."

Jessie had known that something of this kind would be said, and was
prepared for it; but the child's speech vexed her sorely. However, she
said--

"I'm not going to be beat by a chit like that," and at that moment Miss
Lee came in, and that kind of chatter ceased.

But Jessie's cheeks burned o