ife; and she wondered if all that happened in the story could
be really true.

Jennie was pondering in her troubled brain a question which the reading
of the book had brought. What could it be? Evidently it was not to be
answered easily, for her face only grew more clouded, until at last she
resolved to ask the help of some wiser mind.

Fortunately, Jennie knew that she had but to make her perplexities
known to her mother and they would all be explained in the clearest way;
so, seating herself in her rocking-chair by her mother's side, she
said:--

"Mamma, I want you to tell me something."

"Well, dear, what is it?"

"I've just finished my Sabbath school book, you know, and it's just
perfectly lovely; all about the sweetest little girl; only she was
always doing so many kind things for everybody; and I've been trying to
think what's the reason little girls in books always have so many
chances for doing good, and little girls like me, who are out of books,
don't have any at all."

"Not any at all?" questioned the mother. "Is that really so?"

"Well, no, not quite, I suppose," said Jennie, "but then they are just
nothing but the tiniest little bits of things. There's never anything
big and splendid for real little girls like me to do.

"Now, Susy Chrystie, in the story, took her little sister May out for a
walk, and just while they were crossing a bridge, May pulled her hand
away from Susy's, and tried to walk on the edge, just as close as she
could; but in about one second her foot slipped, and she would have
fallen off into the water if her sister hadn't jumped right to her, and
caught hold of her dress, and pulled her back all safe.

"Now just think, mamma," said Jennie, her blue eyes opening widely as
she spoke, "Susy Chrystie saved her little sister's life; wasn't that a
splendid, big something to do?"

"Yes, my dear, that was a brave thing for a little girl to do, for even
an older person might have been too frightened by seeing the danger May
was in, to act quickly; but if my little Jennie will always try to keep
quite still, and never scream when any sudden fright comes to her, she
too may be able to think quickly of the best way in which to help
herself or others."

[Illustration: "_Susy Chrystie saved her little sister's life_."]

"But, mamma, you know that nothing ever does happen to me; and besides,
I haven't any little sister or brother."

"Never mind, my child, if you will do carefully everyt