ss Dorothy's feet and sobbed aloud, "You are so dear! you are so
dear!"

Miss Dorothy lifted her to her lap, smoothed back her hair and
kissed her flushed cheeks. "Cheer up, dear," she said. "One need
not be unhappy forever, and I hope this will soon be all over. Now,
I must go down and get those berries, or it will be too dark to find
them. Don't cry any more," and with a smile Miss Dorothy left her.

It was quite dark when Mrs. Otway at last appeared. "I have talked
it over with your grandfather," she began without preface, "and we
have decided to punish you by having you wear to school all next
week the costume you came home in. That is all we shall do. It will
teach you to be more careful next time. You may come down to supper
now," and Marian meekly followed.

The blackberries were on the table, but Marian could not touch them.
The horror of appearing before her schoolmates in the spotted
petticoat filled her with dismay, and although her grandmother felt
that she had been really very lenient, no punishment she could have
devised would have been more humiliating to the little girl. She had
always been a very dainty child, taking pride in her clothes and
being glad that she could appear as well as any one she knew. How
could she face nineteen pairs of wondering eyes upon Monday morning?
She could see the amused countenances, hear the suppressed giggles,
and imagine the laughing comments whispered with hands hiding
mouths. If only she could fall sick and die so she might never
go to school again.

No one paid much attention to her as she sat there barely tasting
her supper, though she should have been hungry after her long walk
and her early lunch. Miss Dorothy once or twice looked her way and
nodded reassuringly, while Heppy slipped an extra large piece of
cake on her plate as she was passing it around.

But after Marian had gone to bed and was lying forlornly awake,
after an hour of trying to sleep, Miss Dorothy tiptoed into her
room to bend over her, and seeing the wide eyes, to say: "I have
been down to Mrs. Hunt's. She is a dear. Go to sleep, honey. Just
have faith that it will all come out right. Don't worry. I am going
to leave my door open so you will not feel that you are all alone."
And with a kiss she left her to feel somehow quite satisfied that
matters were not so desperate as they seemed, and that Monday's
trial might in some way be set aside if she had faith.

_CHAPTER VI_

_The White A