tfield. Moreover, she could get work for
herself on three days in the week, to help a washerwoman, who gave her
ninepence a day, besides letting little Nan go with her, and have, as she
said, 'the run of her teeth.' She had her admirers, too--young collier
lads, who told her truly enough she was the cleanest, neatest, tidiest
lass in all Botfield. So Martha Fern regarded their residence on the
cinder-hill with more complacency than could have been expected. The only
circumstance which in her secret heart she considered a serious drawback
was her very near neighbourhood to Miss Anne.

'Stephen,' said Martha one Saturday night, after their work was done,
'I've been thinking how it's only thee that's trying to keep the
commandments. I'm not such a scholar as thee; but I've heard thy chapter
read till it's in my head, as well as if I could read it off book myself.
So I'm thinking I ought to love my enemies as well as thee; and I've
asked Black Bess to come and have a cup of tea with us to-morrow.'

'Black Bess!' exclaimed Stephen, with a feeling of some displeasure.

'Ah,' said Martha, 'she's always calling me--a shame to be heard. But
I've quite forgiven her; and to-morrow I'll let her see I can make
pikelets as well as her mother; and we'll have out the three china cups;
only grandfather and little Nan must have common ones. I thought I'd
better tell thee; and then thee'lt make haste home from church in the
afternoon.'

'Black Bess isn't a good friend for thee,' answered Stephen, who was
better acquainted with the pit-girl's character than was Martha, and felt
troubled at the idea of any companionship between them.

'But we are to love our enemies,' persisted Martha, 'and do good to them
that hate us. At any rate I asked her, and she said she'd come.'

'I don't think it means we are to ask our enemies to tea,' said Stephen,
in perplexity. 'If she was badly off, like, and in want of a meal's meat,
it 'ud be another thing; I'd do it gladly. And on a Sunday too! Oh,
Martha, it doesn't seem right.'

'Oh, nothing's right that I do!' replied Martha pettishly; 'thee'rt
afraid I'll get as good as thee, and then thee cannot crow over me. But
I'll not spend a farthing of thy money, depend upon it. I'm not without
some shillings of my own, I reckon. Thee should let me love my enemies as
well as thee, I think; but thee'lt want to go up to heaven alone next.'

Stephen said no more, though Martha continued talking peevishly abou