they come," for the good lady had no intention of going to bed, assuring
herself she would not sleep if she did. So, moving about, she refilled
the lamp, and drawing the machine nearer the stove, began to sew where
Mary had left off. "I wonder how she thinks to make a livin'," Norma
asked herself, smiling grimly, "seein' the machine's left behind. Poor
Mary! I know her too well, she'll be back before morning."

One, two,--then three, a neighboring church clock tolled, and Norma
stitched and waited, stitched and waited. Several times she fell asleep,
her head upon the machine, to awake with a start, hurry to the door and
listen.

A little before four she heard a step, and running to the door caught
poor Mary as she staggered in, half-sinking with her burdens. Taking the
frightened, wailing child and putting her down by the fire, Norma
dragged Mary to a chair.

"Hush," she commanded, when Mary tried to speak, "I know--I understand,"
and for once regardless of the child's comfort, she dragged the sodden
shoes from Mary's feet, drew off the wet skirts and wrapped her in
anything, everything, warm she could find. By this time Mary was sobbing
wildly, and Norma, half-distracted, turned to draw the tea and to toast
some slices of the stale bread she had waiting.

"Now," she said, jerking the table around before Mary, then sitting down
and taking up the child, "you drink that, Mary Carew, before you dare to
say one word!"

The child responded promptly to the warmth and food and began to
chatter. "C'rew did take Angel away, Norma, and it was cold and Angel
cwied, and C'rew cwied, but the nice lady sang."

"I tried to run off with her," sobbed Mary, "but the Lord stood right in
my way an' turned me back."

"Whatever do you mean, Mary?" demanded Norma.

"Just that, just what I said. I was a-runnin' off so's to keep her fer
my own, an' th' Lord stopped me an' sent me back."

The child, nodding on Norma's knee like a rosy little Mandarin, caught
the sacred name. "I p'ay the Lord mine and Joey's and eve'ybody's soul
to keep," she murmured with drowsy effort, thinking C'rew was urging her
to say the little prayer Miss Ruth had taught her.

"He will, He will," said Mary Carew with awed emphasis, "if ever I
doubted it before, Norma, I know now He will. I had been walkin' a good
while after I left here, for I had laid my plans hasty-like, to cross
the river an' get a room on the other side, for I was jus' outer my
head, Nor