w how to express their thoughts.
So every day, they sat down together, indoors or out, and each wrote a
letter to an imaginary friend. Little by little, the letters became
easier and longer and more interesting.

Frequently he recited poetry that he knew by heart, and told them fairy
tales, and stories of every description from the many books he had read.

And so the thousands of hours were spent with simple natural interests,
in a most enjoyable way, without a thought of school-books, or anything
distasteful, compulsory or confining.

What, in this case, were some of the results? One was that the life of
their inner feelings was developed to an unusual degree. Everything was
done to encourage them, and nothing to suppress, or distort them. The
stories and poems made a constant appeal to their imagination, while the
daily letters which they wrote became a means of reflecting and applying
this appeal.

A love of beautiful things was naturally developed in them, and they
naturally conceived a fondness for music and painting and modelling and
poetry and story-telling. There was no pressure exerted upon them in any
of these directions--merely the encouragement of spontaneous interest
and the help of example.

These tastes and qualities, became the common possession of all three
girls. They could all write poetry and stories; they could all draw and
paint and model and play tunes on the piano--with more or less feeling
and facility--and they all grew up with remarkably sympathetic and
gracious personalities--which became, later on, very widely admired and
commented upon.

One of the girls, the eldest, conceived a deeper liking than the others
for music. As time went on, she wanted to spend more and more time at
the piano--playing and practising and learning to read the notes.

The second girl, in a similar way, was more attracted to drawing and
modelling and painting. The youngest one, while the other two were thus
engaged, liked to sit down with pencil and paper and amuse herself in
writing rhymes and stories.

The eldest daughter became a fine musician and composer of music, and a
brilliant career was in sight for her at the time of her death, which
occurred when she was just out of her teens.

The second daughter, won for herself a distinguished place as a painter,
in Paris and in this country.

The youngest one left to her own resources, a widow with a little son to
support, achieved much wealth and fame as a