few drawings, and became more accustomed to the
employment, she found that she need not be so absorbed in it, as to be
unable to attend to her sisters while they read aloud. This added great
pleasantness to their morning employment, and both Jane's work, and
Isabella's drawing, got on fast while they listened to Harriet and
Alfred, who took it in turn to read. But when the pasting together of
their work began, there was an end of reading. It was too anxious a
business to admit of any division of attention. The gilt edges must be
exactly even, the sides must go exactly together, the bottoms must be
exactly flat; or they would be deformed and unsteady. Jane was the only
one careful enough to undertake this most difficult part of the
business, and she bestowed great pains upon it. In general, she
completely succeeded; but it was a work of time, and the fortnight of
her holidays was over before their task was more than two-thirds done.
Eight articles out of the dozen were finished, and she longed to see
them completed. It was with a sigh that she left the busy and happy
party at home, on the morning when she resumed her charge at Mrs
Everett's, and she could not help fancying that Mrs Everett was less
kind than usual, that the children were far from improved by their
release from her authority, that they had never been so troublesome, and
her task never so irksome. This was in part true; the children were
nearly as unwilling to be managed, as Jane was to manage them, and they
were fully as sorry as she, that the days of lessons and work, of
authority and obedience, were come again, after the romping hours of
their Christmas revellings.

A strong effort at patience on Jane's part, and something like an
endeavour to be good on the children's, soon restored things to their
usual state, and teacher and learners were on their old terms again.
When Jane returned home, she found that Isabella had put away her
drawing in time to take Harriet and Alfred a walk before dinner. The
evening was passed busily and happily, and the finishing stroke was put
to two more of the bags and baskets. In a week more all were completed.
Jane was glad of it. The last two or three drawings had not been quite
so well done, and it was easy to see that Isabella began to be tired.
She owned that she was a little, a very little; but said, that, after a
week's rest, she should be able to begin again with as much relish as
ever. Jane was sorry th