as passing the tall garden-hedge, Tony slipped out at
the back-door, and crept softly to the hedge, saying--

"Wait a minute, and give me your bag."

The little man gave him the bag, and Tony ran to the store-room, where
there were several sacks, and filled the man's bag with the finest and
best meal he could find. The man received it with joy, and thanked Tony
heartily for his kindness, and said to him, "If you are ever in
distress, and want help, come to the oak spring."

He nodded his head, and Tony saw him take the steep path up the
mountains.

"Poor little man!" said Tony to himself, "perhaps he has a hungry little
child at home, for whom he wants to make some porridge. It was very
wrong of me to go and take father's meal out of the store-room without
his knowledge; yet the little man's need was so great, and he begged so
earnestly, that it would have been a greater injustice not to have
taken pity on him. I will go to my mother and ask her to give me less
for my breakfast and supper, until the meal is replaced."

Summer was nearly over when one day a water-spout burst in, the upper
valley, which caused such a sudden and terrible flood, that the miller
and his family had only time to save their lives by flight.

When the waters had subsided, the miller contrived a hovel in the only
corner left standing of the mill; and here, with his wife and Tony,
abode in the extreme of poverty.

The good boy was grieved for his parents' misery, but chiefly for his
poor mother, who was now unable to leave her wretched bed of moss and
leaves.

Two goats had escaped the general destruction. These Tony took care of,
and drove them out to feed upon the mountains every day. Having set out
with them one morning, he took the same hill-path by which the brown man
had gone, until he came to a large oak-tree, under whose roots he
perceived a cave, which appeared to have been hollowed out by a spring.
At the entrance Tony sat down beneath the tree, and suffered his goats
to browse and skip about at pleasure.

"Oh!" said he, "if father only was more cheerful and mother quite well,
all would be right, and although we have no mill, and only dry bread and
goats' milk, I should be quite content."

With these thoughts in his head he fell asleep. He had not slept long
before he heard his name called, and on opening his eyes he saw far into
the cave, and at its entrance stood the little brown man, who, nodding
kindly, said--

"Art tho