ith the dress and other
articles, he stood by in delighted contemplation, looking from me to
Matty as if he would say to her, "This is my young mistress;" to me,
"This is my _protegee_."

As for Matty, she appeared, so far as she showed any feeling at all, to
consider that the gifts were altogether due to him; and she vouchsafed
no word of thanks to me. Not that I cared for expressions of gratitude;
but I felt a little hopeless as I saw how entirely I had failed to make
any impression on her.

Tony, however, who was present again, was profuse in his thanks, and
really seemed to feel all that he said.

The shining hair fell like a shielding veil over Matty's deformity
again to-day; and after this it became her practice to wear it so when
she was away from home. There she wore it tightly bound up, and kept it
as much out of sight as possible; fearing, poor little creature, that
she might be bereft of it, should any idea of its pecuniary value enter
her mother's mind.

CHAPTER X.

A COLD BATH.

"Well, Jim," I said, as I returned home in the fast-gathering twilight,
with my escort trotting beside me, "how are you getting on now at
school? I have not heard lately."

"I'm havin' an awful hard time just now, Miss Amy," he answered, coming
nearer,--"an awful hard time."

"How is that?" I asked. "Are they pressing you too much? Have they
given you too many lessons, or are those you had before becoming
harder?"

"Neither, miss," he answered. "'Tain't the lessons; I don't mind them.
Lessons ain't nothin'--I mean lessons ain't anything"--Jim was growing
more choice in language, and taking infinite pains with his parts of
speech--"when a feller has such good help as Miss Milly or Mr. Edward.
If they're too hard for me, one of 'em always helps me an' makes 'em
plain, an' I keep along good enough in the classes. But it's the
keepin' cool, an' not flyin' out when I get provoked, 'specially with
that Theodore Yorke. Miss Amy, you never saw the like of him. He's just
the meanest chap ever breathed; and the way he finds out things you
don't want him to know, an' keeps bringin' 'em up an' naggin' about
'em, is the worst."

"All the more credit to you, then, Jim, if you keep your temper under
such provocation," I answered soothingly, "and you show yourself by far
the better man of the two. You know the Bible says, 'Greater is he that
ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city.'"

"Well, Miss Amy," he said, "I guess