hat, under the genial influences of home tenderness and early
womanhood, a little spring of gentle humour had begun to flow softly
through the quiet fields of her childlike nature.

The mason gazed at her doubtfully, and was troubled. Annie saw his
discomposure, and taking his great hand in her two little ones, looked
full into his cold grey eyes, and said, still smiling,

"Eh, Thomas! wadna ye hae a body mak' a grainy fun whiles whan it comes
o' itsel' like?"

But Thomas, anxious about the state of mind that produced the change,
did not show himself satisfied.

"We dinna hear 'at the Saviour himsel' ever sae muckle as smiled," said
he.

"Weel, that wad hae been little wonner, wi' what he had upo' 'm. But
I'm nae sure that he didna, for a' that. Fowk disna aye tell whan a
body lauchs. I'm thinkin' gin ane o' the bairnies that he took upo' 's
knee,--an' he was ill-pleased wi' them 'at wad hae sheued them
awa',--gin ane o' them had hauden up his wee timmer horsie, wi' a
broken leg, and had prayed him to work a miracle an' men' the leg, he
wadna hae wrocht a miracle maybe, I daursay, but he wad hae smilet, or
maybe lauchen a wee, and he wad hae men't the leg some gait or ither to
please the bairnie. And gin 't had been me, I wad raither hae had the
men'in' o' 's ain twa han's, wi' a knife to help them maybe, nor twenty
miracles upo' 't."

Thomas gazed at her for a moment in silence. Then with a slow shake of
the head, and a full-blown smile on his rugged face, he said:

"Ye're a curious cratur', Annie. I dinna richtly ken what to mak' o' ye
whiles. Ye're like a suckin' bairn and a gran'mither baith in ane. But
I'm thinkin', atween the twa, ye're maistly i' the right. And ye hae
set me richt afore noo.--Sae ye're nae gaun hame to the Bruces again?"

"I didna say that," answered Annie; "I only said I had h'ard naething
aboot it yet."

"What for dinna ye jine the kirk, noo?" said Thomas abruptly, after
having tried in vain to find a gradual introduction to the question.
"Dinna ye think it's a deowty to keep in min' what the great Shepherd
did for his ain chosen flock?"

"Nae doot o' that, Thomas. But I never thocht o' sic a thing. I dinna
even ken 'at I am ane o' the elec'."

"Ye dinna ken yet?"

"No," answered Annie, sorrowfully.

"I wonner at that," returned Thomas.

"And, forby," resumed Annie, "gin I war, I'm no guid eneuch yet. An'
besides that--"

But here she stopped and remained silent.

"What wa