INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

AND TuE

MISCHIEVOUS

G(9 t 9u anh tfg lOtfr.

BY THE AUTHOR OF
" CHICIlELD WfTHOUT CflC9WED," PLAIN THINGS 30 TiOLTT L
PoLrmp A RIT BfOB," PPra' fTlONlE.' &o. &,. &e.

LONDON:

DARTON AND CO.,

HOL3BORN HILL.
;a,

LONDON
W. STEVYNS, PRINTER, BELL YARD,
TEMPLE BAR.

INDUSTRIOUS

MISCHIEVOUS

BOY.

THERE was

once upon

a time,

I dare say there still is, for such
things do not very often move out
of their places, a pretty village; it
was far away from London, and no
railroad had yet been made within

ten miles of it.

The trees were

green all the summer, for
were no dusty roads to spoil

THE

GIRL

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

freshness,

and the hedges

fields were gay with flowers from
April to September, in spite of
the many little feet that trod
them down in merry sport, and

hands

that plucked them

but to throw aside

again.

let me tell you, little children, that
it always seems to me a pity when
I see the wood walks strewn with
faded blossoms: they look so fair,

and dance

in the breeze so gaily

as they grow. But how soon they
die when thrown upon the ground,

and all their beauty

is wasted

before

its time !

But in the vil-

lage of Grovely there were, as I

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

said before, so many flowers, that
it seemed as if new buds sprang
up on purpose to replace those
that were taken by the little cot-
tage children for their nosegays

and their garlan
However, it

of the
to writ

is not the story

field flowers I am going
e you; but that of two

little human blossoms, that grew
also in this pretty village. I
wish I could tell you they were

both fair and sweet,

as human

blossoms that have a happy earth
and a bright heaven around and

above them should be.

But it

One only was a true

was not so.

6 THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

filling the

her with gladness

thoughts.

place around
and sweet

and painful rather than pleasant
to look at or to think of: in the
way, and doing harm instead of
good to those around him. Mary
was the flower and Louis was the

weed
the title

or, as they are called

of this book, one was the

Bee and the other

the Sloth,

You have seen a Bee, little chil-
dren, often; have you not ? but
perhaps some little London boys
and girls never yet have done so.
The Bee is never idle: she is up
so soon as there is any work for

flower,

The other was a weed,

x
t

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

her to do

that is, so soon as the

rising sun has awakened the flow'
ers that shut their eyes at night;
and far away over the fields she

flies, or
gardens,

abroad into the gay
often miles from home,

sweeping the yellow dust from the
flowers till she has loaded her fea-

thery coat with as much as it

can

carry, and

draining

the sweets

from every dewy bell and blossom;
then home she goes, humming
gladly: she does not do her work
in a sullen or a grudging way
but she sings over it with a cheer-

ful heart.

When she reaches the

hive,she labours with allher friends

8 THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

to make

honey

them as well as for herself:

is no

there

selfishness, no idleness in

the Bee
willing,
the day

Industrious, cheerful,

friendly, busy, active all
, often till the sun has

sunk to rest; so long as anything
has to be done she is astir to do it,
and to do it well.

How is it with
lazy, selfish fellow,

the Sloth?
he thinks i

of his own wants and his

pleasures; and, so

good
himself

far from

to any one creature

he destroys so far as he

can the good of others; for
strips the fine tree on which

wax,

.

f,

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

feeds of every green leaf till it is
bare and ugly, then sleeps idly
till hunger rouses him to seek
some fresh pasture. This, at least,
is the picture of the Sloth that is
held out as a warning to all idle
boys and girls. But I must pri-
vately inform my little readers,
that it was in times when the
Sloth was very little known that
he was first held up as an example
of laziness: now we are better
acquainted with his habits and
manners, and he is no longer
thought lazy for walking very
slowly on the ground, because his
feet and claws only, fit him for

10 THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

moving

from branch

to branch,

with his body hanging downwards;
and though he strips the trees of

their verdure,

he is known to be

harmless and gentle, and not able
to feed on any other diet. But,

be this

as it may, any one

would

rather be called after

the busy

Bee than the useless Sloth,

even Louis

felt sometimes sorry

to have earned such a name.

Louis

had no

was an only son, and he
mother. This was very

sad for him. I dare say, if

mother

had lived, he would have

been a better boy; for he would

and

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

have been so sorry to grieve her
tender heart, and it would have
made him so happy to see her
smile fondly upon him. But she
died when he was only five years

old. Till then he h
steady little child,
was gone there was
after him all day,
worked at a farm,
early and home late.
self, Louis began
under a sunny bank

ad been a good
but when she
no one to look
for his father
and was out
Left to him-
by lying idly
in his father's

garden, and here he soon got the
habit of both wasting his time and
doing mischief. Every little in-
sect that came within his reach as

12 THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

he rolled lazily in the sunshine
was teased for his sport, because
he had nothing better to do. One
day, a good lady named Mrs. Ben-
son was taking her morning's walk
by the cottage, and hearing Louis
crying very loud, she made her
way into the garden to see what
was the matter. There sat Louis
under the hedge, the tears rolling
fast down his cheeks, which were
swelled with crying.
What is the matter, my little
man ? said Mrs. Benson.
A great fly, sobbed Louis, has
hurt my hand.
What were you doing to it?

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

I was trying to pull it out of a

hole in this pear,

and it bit me.

It was a wasp, and it has

you,

said Mrs. Benson.

should not have meddled with it.
Why are you sitting here this fine
day? you should be at school.
Does no one teach you ?

sobbed

Louis.

want to go to school.
Mrs. Benson took the

the cottage and

I don't

child into

bathed his hand

with vinegar, and then, finding he
had no mother, she made up her
mind to get him sent to school;

for she knew

if little boys are idle

they will get into mischief.

14 THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

as she pitied him very much, she
went down that very evening to
the cottage again, and spoke to
his father about sending him to
school. And the poor man was
very glad indeed, and told Louis
he was to go the next day to the
place the good lady told him of.
Louis did not mind at first, for he
did not quite know what school
was; but as soon as he found out
that part of his duty there lay in
sitting upright on a bench, and
that besides he had to learn, and
was not allowed to play, he made
up his mind that school was
not at all a pleasant place, and

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

that he would not go oftener than
he was obliged to do. He was
afraid to stay away quite, or I
think he would have done that;
but he went so seldom, that he
could not learn anything. And
when Mrs. Benson found how
often he played truant, she told
him she should speak to his father.
And so she did, and a sound beat-
ing Louis had. But he was a bad
boy. Instead of feeling that he
was sent to school for his own
good, he grew angry, and stayed
away as often as before, and his
poor father was not able to look
after him; so he went on as he

16 THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

liked. If the day was wet, he
went to school; but there he sat
making dogs' ears of the corners
of the leaves. And when it was
fine, he spent his time under the
garden-hedge, or, as he grew older,
in mischief and folly. At last his
father thought he was old enough
to do something for his own living :
so he spoke to the farmer with
whom he worked, and Louis was
taken on as an odd boy at the
farm; that is, as a boy to run
errands, or do any odd work that
might have to be done. The poor
man hoped by this to keep Louis
more under his own eye, and to

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

break him of his idle habits.

did not much

like the

change. He had now to get up
in the morning at the same hour

with his father ;
often lay in bed
o'clock. And

while, before, he
till eight or nine
he was never al-

lowed to stand idling about at
the farm; for there everybody is
busy, and people standing still
would be sadly in the way. But
old habits are hard to get rid of,

and Louis

found

it almost more

than he could bear, to go on work,
work all day long; and if he
found that he could slip away
without being seen, he was sure

Louis

18 THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

to make

off to the nearest hay-

stack, and rolling

himself up

a ball go fast asleep.
Many a time he was roused from
these naps by a smart box on the
ear, if one of the men found him
there. You lazy young fellow,

they would say;

what can you

want with sleep in the middle
the day ?
Once the old sow found l

out, and Louis woke

up from

sort of nightmare to see her staring
in his face, whilst all her young
ones ran squeaking over his body.
He was in a fine fright, and felt
rather afraid to lie down to sleep

of

him

in the farm-yard again. But if
he was sent on an errand, oh!
that was charming-no one could

disturb

thinking

him then; and, without

of the trouble his

might cause, he took his fill of

sleep under
he came to.

the first hedgerow

He was sent, one bright

June

morning, to the nearest town with

a basket full of eggs.

The basket

was heavy, and the day was very
warm; but a boy of nine years
old does not want to sit down and
sleep, like an old man, at noonday.
However, Louis's bad habits were
too strong for him, and he was

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

scarcely clear of the

farm-build-

ings before he set down his basket,
and was soon sound asleep on a
warm bank.
He had not slept long when
Mary, the flower, or the Bee,

came passing

L

her way to the farm
work her mother had
ed for the farmer's
laid her little hand

Louis's

shoulder.

I

She was on
with some
just finish-
wife. She
gently on
Dear Louis,

wake; wake up, Louis; only look,
Bob has been turning out the
eggs.
Louis jumped up. It was too
true; Bob, the merry young sheep-

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

dog, had come running out for a
gambol, and finding Louis and a
basket, had stopped in play, and
began to pull out the cloth in
which the eggs were wrapped.
Snapping, in his sport, at the
white balls as they came tumbling
out,he helped on the mischief, and
more than a dozen eggs lay broken
on the ground.
What shall I do ? what shall
I do? cried Louis, as the thought
of his father and the angry far-
mer's wife came full into his mind.
0 how I shall be beaten !
0 no, you shall not, cried the
tender-hearted little girl. I am

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

going to the farm, and I will tell
them they must not beat you, for

that it was all Bob's fault.
him pulling out the cloth.
Louis was a little comfo

I saw

,rted

hearing this, and crept back be-
hind Mary to the farm.
What do you want back again

already ? cri
angry voice.

led the mistress, in an
I am sure you have

not been to town and back yet.
Mary grew very hot, and her
legs trembled; but her brave little

heart kept her up,

close to

the farmer's

and going
wife, she

said, If you please, ma'am,
don't be angry with Louis.

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

is so sorry;
but-

it was not his fault-

Well, what is it?

asked

mistress, in a kinder voice; for she
knew and liked little Mary.
Taking courage, Mary went on.
I saw it all; it was Bob pulled

the cloth out of the

basket, and

the eggs came rolling out too, and

a few are broken.
forgive Louis.
But how came

Pray, ma'am,

the basket in

Bob's reach ?
He was so tired, ma'am;

I mean

Louis was, that-that he could
not help it, but he fell asleep, poor
fellow.

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

Fell asleep indeed, in noonday;
a lazy fellow! cried the owner of
the eggs. Here, Ben, she added,
calling to Louis's father, some-
thing must be done to this son of
yours, or he will turn out good
for nothing, he will indeed; and
the story was repeated.
However Mary begged so hard
for Louis, that at last he was for-
given; and, before she went home,
the little girl made him promise
he would try to be a better boy.
And, as Louis was very grateful to
Mary at that moment, he pro-
mised what she asked him. If
only he could have kept his word !

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

And now let us see how the
Bee passed her time.
Mary, too, was an only child,

and she had no father:

been dead
little baly.

he had

ever since she was a
He had always been

in poor health, and one day taking
cold, after many hours' hard work,

he soon fell

into a decline, and

died. His poor wife was in

grief,
but sh
lament

for she loved him much;

e
j.

did not sit
She had

down idly and
now both her-

self and her little daughter

provide for, and

for the sake of

her child she did not indulge

in giving way to

herself

sorrow.

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

It is a great comfort, when we are
in trouble, to have leisure to sit
down and cry; but sometimes
our duty would make it selfish in
us to seek this comfort. And,
when this is the case, we shall
find far more relief in going about
actively to do what has to be
done. So poor Mrs. Field, as
Mary's mother was called, began
to think what she ought to do,
and going to the good parson of
the parish, she asked his advice.
Through his kindness she was
soon well known as a clever needle-
woman, and having taken great
pains when she was young to learn

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

to work well, she was liked so
much by those who at first em-
ployed her merely out of kindness,
that she was recommended by one
person to another, and her hands
were always full of work.
Mary grewup an active lively lit-
tle girl, andas hermother'stimewas
precious, she used to do almost all
the household work of their little
cottage. Mrs. Field could tell her
what to do, and how to do it, as
she sat at work. And Mary was
so happy to be useful; it was so
pleasant to her to be able to help
her dear mother; that she took the
greatest pains to remember all that

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

was told her, and could very soon
clean, and sweep, and dust, and
even cook like a little woman. But

Mrs. Field

did not wish

Mary to

spend all her time in these things;
she knew the use of learning, and
she sent Mary to school. Now

did not much like

school at first:

going

she was active

and lively, and liked running about

much

better than

sitting

And then she was so fond

mother, that it was hard to leave

her even for a few hours,

and she

was so much afraid lest her mother
should want help whilst she was

But Mary was like the Bee

away.

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY,

in another good

quality-she was

obedient.
Do youknow that the Bees have
a ruler, a Queen, in every hive,
whom they all obey and serve ?
And Mary knew, too, how glad
she should be one day that she
had been to school. So she said

to herself, I

must go

to school

now, because mother wishes it,
and because I ought to learn how

to read and write.

But as I do

not like to leave mother, this is
what I must do: I will do my
very best to get on. I will work
very hard, and never waste one
single moment whilst I am at

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

school, and then I shall soon be
able to give up going, and can
stay always with mother.
Now I think this was very

wise of Mary.

Like the

Bee, she

meant to gather honey whilst the

sun shone ;

then she could

turn to her home, and share and
enjoy her treasures with those she
loved. Now the school was at

some distance, all

fields,

lane from Mary's cottage,

was out of

the village ;

across

three
a long
which
and as

there was much to be

done before

leaving home, Mary had to get up

Oh so early, almost as

and at the end of

very early.

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

soon as the sun in summer, and
long before him in winter. As
soon as she was dressed, and had
said her prayers, she hurried down
stairs, opened the casement wide,
and lit the fire; then she swept
the little parlour, and wiped away
every atom of dust. I forgot to
say she put on the kettle as soon
as the fire was lit, that her mother
might find the water boiling when
she came down stairs. Then the
cups and saucers were taken care-
fully from the little closet, and set
in order on the snow-white cloth.
If her mother was not down stairs
by the time all this was done, Mary

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

had a run in the garden,

and in

summer would pick a pretty nose-
gay, to make the little room fra-

grant.

Indeed, nearly all the year

round, she could find a few flowers;

for even in

winter, unless there

had been a very sharp frost to

wither up

their bloom, there was

sure to be some hardy

dahlia

chrysanthemum that had defied
the cold, and lingered to make
the little garden gay.
Once, Mary found a half-blown
rose, even in January. This was

a real

prize,.and was carried with

great care to her dear mother.
Then Mary had two tame rabbits

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

to feed; and if peas or beans
were to be gathered for dinner,

the busy little maid found

time

for this also.

before

So she was not idle

breakfast, and as soon as

that was over, and the cups and
saucers were cleanly washed and
restored to their proper places,
and the crumbs shaken from the
table-cloth underthe pretty porch,
to tempt the little birds as near
as might be to the door, Mary sat

down
school.

to learn her

lessons

As she always tried to

spend a good half-hour over them
at night, there was not much to
be done in this way; and in due

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

time, always in due
on her bonnet and

time, she put
Stippet, and

kissing her dear mother tripped
away. Very often she had to take
work home for her mother as she
went, and when this was the case,
of course she set off rather earlier.
But this was one great advantage
of Mary's always getting up at the
right time, she had plenty of

before

her f

of this kind : anm
said to her, My
quite forgot thai
round to such an
on your way, Mal

or any occasion
I if her mother
dear Mary, I
Syou must go
d such a house
ry could always

answer cheerfully, Yes, dear mo-

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

other; and was sure to be at school

by nine
Whereas

o'clock

just the same.

it often happens that

little girls and boys, who are very

fond of lying in bed

and glad

any excuse for doing so, will con-
sider all they are likely to have to
do in the morning, and reckon
just how long it will take them.
Then they say to themselves, I

have only so and so to do,

and it

will only take me so long, so I
may stay in bed till such and such

an hour. But then,
get up, suppose they
any mistake in their

when they
have made
reckoning;

or suppose a button or a string

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

comes off, such things will happen,
and delays them; or suppose papa
or mamma want something done
which they had not taken into
account; 0 then how sadly wrong
everything will go: some duty

has to be

left undone, or

pleasure is lost, or perhaps even
dear papa and mamma see a frown
or hear an impatient word when
they give their orders; and all be-

cause their little

child would lie in

bed till the very last minute. T
my advice, and always jump

early, long before

it seems really

needful to do so. You are sure to
find something to do, and at least

'ake
up

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

you acquire a good habit, which
may be of the greatest use to you
during life.
Well, let us fly away after Mary
the Bee.
Across the fields and through
the long lane she goes, and many
a kind action she will find time
for even in so short a journey.
Here lies a poor beetle that has
fallen upon its back and cannot
get up again, the first careless
step would crush it to death;
with a gentle finger Mary raises
it, and spreading its golden-tinted
wings, away it roams, and fills her
heart with joy: or a poor wounded

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

worm writhes painfully on the
rough gravel ; Mary does not
shrink from lifting the poor crea-
ture to the soft mould, where it
can hide itself from the burning
sun: an ant burthened with too
heavy a load, a fly struggling in a
spider's web, these are little objects
of pity, but Mary cares for and
helps them all. And sometimes
she can do greater good, if indeed
the worth of a good action ought
to be counted by the size of the
creature aided, which, when I
think how small we all are before
God, I cannot believe. For some-

finds a little boy bent

times Mary

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

upon tearing a nest from the
hedge, whilst the fond mother
hovers round, afraid to venture
nearer, but too tender to seek
perfect safety in flight. Many of
these acts of cruelty has Mary
hindered by her prayers and tears,
and gentle words.
Once, when she found a very big
boy so set upon a nest of young
sparrows that nothing she could
say seemed to move him at all,
Mary was in despair ; but the sight
of the fluttering mother, whose
mournful cries went to her heart,
gave her courage, and as a last

she cried out, Dear Jack, if

effort

THE INIQUSTRIOUS GIRL

you will spare them,

white

rabbit

I will give
; I will in-

Jack was only too glad to agree
to such terms, and, as he knew he
might trust Mary's word, he pro-
mised her that he would let the

nest alone till

the young

were fledged and flown, if at the
end of that time she would keep

promise.

And hard

was to Mary to part with her
pet, yet she was almost repaid by
the happiness she felt in seeing
the callow nestlings safe, day after
day, as she passed by to school,
till their wings were strong enough

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

to bear them off. And by this time
one of her rabbits had a family
of young ones; and Jack, who was
a kind boy except in the trick of
birds' nesting, told Mary he would
not take away her pet white rab-
bit, but would be satisfied with
one of the little ones, that he might
tame it for himself. And you
you may be sure Mary had no
objection to the change.
And at school she laboured like
a little bee, and though not more
quick or bright than some of the
other children, yet she was never
reproved for want of diligence or
attention, and was beloved both

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

by her mistress for her carefulness
in fulfilling her duties, and by

her schoolfellows for her

and good humour.

kindness

She was home

time enough to get dinner ready
for her mother; then back to

school again till

tea-time;

and in

the evening, after she

had learnt

her lessons for the next day, she
used to enjoy a happy time with
her own dear mother, chatting
over the little adventures of the
day. Then, after they had read a
chapter in the Bible and said their

prayers, Mary

and her mother

went to rest, thanking God for all
the blessings he bestowed upon

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

them, blessings which they doubly
enjoyed through their own cheer-
ful, grateful hearts. And now we
will see how Louis gets on.

It was towards the end of au-

tumn.

Louis had now been three

or four months at the farm. I
wish I could tell you that he was

a better

often found

because

he

y. He was not so
out in wrong-doing,
had grown artful

through the fear of punishment,
and could almost always hide the

mischief he

did, either by a lie, or

by allowing the blame to fall upon

some other person.

But no one

THE INDUSTRIOtS GIRL

felt real trust in him. He feared
to look one honestly in the face,

and he had

a down

eye, as though he was

cast guilty
ashamed of

something.
Mrs. Benson had not left off

caring for

Louis,

although he had

not been grateful to her for her
kindness; and as she often went
to the farm, she saw him there

from time to time, and

was doing well.

hoped he

One day, she

came down in a great hurry, to
ask the farmer's wife to send up
some poultry, and butter and
eggs, as quickly as possible; for
some visitors were coming to

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

spend the next day with her, and
she had a great deal to prepare
for their dinner. So some poor
speckled hens, who had just hop-
ped up to roost, were very much
alarmed to find themselves caught
hold of as they were composing
themselves to sleep; and being
carried into the barn, poor things,
they had not much time given
them to wonder at anything fur-
ther. When they were nicely
plucked, they were put into a
basket with two dozen of eggs
and three or four pounds of butter,
and being carefully covered over,
a cry was raised for Louis.

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

Louis had

just slipped

round

the corner of the lane to have a

game at marbles with Tom,

ano-

their idle boy, though he ought to
have been getting the food ready

for the pig's

supper; but, when he

heard his name called, he
fast as he could.
Where have you been,

ran as

Louis ?

asked his mistress.
I ran to the lane to open the
gate for the last load of corn,
ma'am, answered the naughty boy.

Well,
said she,

it's a long time coming,
for I hear nothing of it

I'm afraid you were idling

away your time.

But now you

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

must take this basket and go as
fast as you can to Mrs. Benson's;
for she has pies and custards,
and I don't know what else, to

make
don't

this evening; and, if you
get there in time, I shall be

very angry with you.

It won't

be worth your while to come back
again to-night, for it is almost six
now.
Louis took the basket, and pro-
mising as usual that he would not
delay five minutes on the road,
away he went towards Mrs.
Benson's.
Tom was still playing by himself
in the lane. 0, how charming

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

this is,
back to
Yes,

said he; have you come
stay ?
said Louis; at least I'm

not to go back to work to-night.
So we may as well have our game
out.

What's
Tom.

that basket

asked

O, I've got to take that to Mrs.

but that will be all in

my way home, and I
plenty of time, I dare
I'm not, she won't

Shall

bein

say; and, if
know what

time I left the farm.
Tom said no more: he was only

too glad to
him; for

get Louis to play with

they were

Benson's;

both sad

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

lazy fellows, and suited each other

very well indeed.
Quarter after

quarter chimed

from the

church

heeded not the

clock,
flight

but Louis
of time.

Meanwhile

Mrs. Benson, having

hurried home, began to prepare

for the arrival of

the butter and

eggs, that she might lose no time
in making her pies and custards.

Betty,

her neat handmaiden,

bustled about.

The kitchen table

was cleared and spread with a
snowy cloth, on which the pie-
board, the flour-tub, ajug of water,
the rolling-pin, and sundry other
articles were soon set in due array.

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

I know we may depend upon
Mrs. Duke at the farm, said the
good lady: it cannot take more
than half-an-hour to have every-
thing ready for us. But six
o'clock, a quarter past, half past,
three-quarters past, still no butter
-no eggs.
Mrs. Benson was a very calm
and quiet person, but still she
did begin to grow vexed at having
to sit idle so long in her large
Holland apron and sleeves, waiting
to make the pastry. At last, when
the clock struck seven, she could
bear it no longer, and bade Betty
run down to see if there could

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY. 51

have been any mistake. Now
Betty, who was also full of pre-
parations, was not well pleased to
leave her work; but knowing how
much the things from the farm
were really wanted, she lost no
time in obeying her mistress. But
Betty's temper was just as quick
as Mrs. Benson's was calm, and as
she ran through the garden and
across the fields to the farm, she
comforted herself by grumbling,
as often as she could find breath
enough, at having to go on
an errand when she was so
busy.
To have to leave those plates that

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

I was washing

so carefully.

to one but the cat will jump up
and break some when she finds I'm

Mistress

minding her.

knock at the door

will never think

And then,

should come,

for her to have to go and open it
with her apron and sleeves on.

And it's just
Brooks so often

evening.

the time old

looks in of an

Well, if I don't tell

Mrs. Duke a piece

mind

my name is not Betty Trimmer.
But people never think. Well I
declare if there's not the boy

at the

farnt with a great basket,

and he's down on the ground

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

marbles.

0, you

young

scamp!

Is that basket for us ?

Yes, ma'am,

said

Lo

ing up, and frightened

ing a story by Betty's
looks.

ouis, jump-
out of tell-

voice and

Then you take it on this minute,

and see if I

don't go and tell your

mistress what a trick you've served
us.
So saying, Betty, who was then
too angry with Louis to care for
staying out a few minutes longer,
so that she could get him punished
as he deserved, ran through the
gate and into the farm-yard; and
finding Mrs. Duke standing talk-

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

ing with her husband at the door,
whilst one or two men loitered

near, she
heavily.

laid her complaint very

Mrs. Duke

was very

much vexed indeed.

Being a cle-

ver manager, she fully entered
into all Betty's anger at having to
leave her work, and was pained to

of good

Mrs. Benson wait-

ing so long.
I assure you,

Betty,

said she,

sent that boy away from here at a
quarter to six o'clock. He ought
to have been with you by six.
But he has served us so many
tricks that we really must part
with him.

think

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

No, don't do that mistress, said

one of the men.
it on so. Tell

and let

Ben would

take

i him to-morrow,

thrash

Louis

well.

Perhaps that '11 cure him.
Mrs. Duke agreed that I
should have one more trial;

she said

she feared beating would

not do such a boy much good.
Betty, whose passion had poured
itself all forth in words, and who

had a really kind

heart,

now put

in a word.
You see, after all, he has no mo-
ther, Mrs. Duke; and so, perhaps,
I was wrong in being too hard

has had no one to

upon one that

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

him up well.

But I really

was put out.
--Betty then bustled home,

make up, as well as she

lost time;

and Louis

could, for
had his

thrashing the next day.

Mrs. Duke feared,

denied

it only har-

his heart, and he went on

quite as badly as before. We will
now look at the hive again.

When

Mary was about twelve

years old she could read and spell
very nicely. She had a prize given
her for being the best scholar that

year;

and, as she had also learned

to write a very

good hand,

could manage a sum pretty well,

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

her mother
leave school.

thought she might
For, as she said,

you can always find an hour in
the evening, Mary, to keep up what
you've learned; and I have now
so much work to do, that if you
can stay at home and help me, we

may begin,

perhaps, to put a little

by against a rainy day.
What is that, mother ? said
Mary, laughing.
Why, a time of need and trouble
is called a rainy day, child. Sup-
pose I should be taken ill, what

should we

do if we had not a little

something put by ? Or if you were
to be ill, I should have to leave my

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

work all the same to nurse you.
So we must try and get a little
before-hand in the world.
* Mary was only too happy to
stay all day long with her dear
mother. And at last she worked so
very neatly, that Mrs. Field, who
had often been asked by the ladies
round to come and nurse in their
houses when there was any sickness
because she was so quiet and gen-
tie, thought she might really ven-
ture sometimes to trust Mary to
go on with her work at home, and
oblige some of her best employers
by going out, if they wanted her.
There was very soon an occasion,

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

this world

always, even in
lages, somebody
help. A poor ol

of ours there is
the quietest vil-
in need of such

Id man, who lived

in a cottage quite at the other end
of the village, had a son who was

a good, hard-working

fellow,

toiled from morning till night to
support himself and his old father.
During the harvest, he over-ex-
erted himself and a fever came on,

which in

a little while turned to

typhus, and every one was afraid

go near him for fear

of catching

it. Every one, I should not say,
for those who are poor are not
often quite so selfish as the rich,

for in

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

and will risk their health, and even
lives, if there is any chance of their
being able to do one another any
good. Nay, even for the sake of
speaking a few words of sympathy
when that is all in their power,
how often will one poor person
go and stand beside the bed of an-
other, from which those who could
afford to bring outward comforts
in their hands, will shrink with
terror. So Mrs. Field, when she
knew how poor Thomas lay, sick
in bed, with no one to wait upon
him or do for him, except his half-
helpless old father, did her best to
get through her .work in haste

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY. 61

that day; and then taking a new-
laid egg or two, and such fragments
as they could spare from their
own scanty supper, in a little bas-
ket, she set off to the cottage.
She found the sick man very ill,
and his poor father half distracted;
full of grief at seeing his dear son
so ill and to feel so unable to help
him, and terrified at the position
in which he found himself placed,
without money or the means of
earning any. Mrs. Field's cheer-
ful face at the door beamed upon
him like that of some good angel,
and grasping her hands, he prayed
her, whilst the tears ran down his

THE INDTUTRTIOS GIRL

withered

cheeks, to

tell him what

he could do.

Sit down, my good man,
this morsel of supper, for

say you

and eat
I dare

had no time to think

yourself all day, and you must
keep up your strength, for you
will want it all now. And, whilst
you do that, I will try and smooth
this poor fellow's bed a bit; for he
is very uneasy, I am sure.
So Mrs. Field made the old
man sit down and eat, and setting
to work herself, with a light step
and gentle hand, she soon brought
the sick room to a state of com-
fort, which refreshed even poor

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

Thomas
smoothed

himself. The 1
and the pillow

.I1

3d was
raised;

the window was opened to let in

some fresh

evemng

air, which

Mrs. Field assured the old man

would do no harm,

was rather

afraid

though he
of it; the

poor curtains were neatly folded;

and when

the hands

and face of

the patient were gently washed,
he felt so much more comfortable,
that he fell into a quiet sleep, the

first he haw

I enjoyed for n

days. Mrs. Field then made the
old man lie down to take some
rest also, whilst she watched. And
at about eleven o'clock, late hours

nany

DX

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

for the village
tage followed
blessings. TI

, she left the cot-
by his prayers and

next

morning,
to the

clergyman's house, to tell him
how ill poor Thomas was; and, as
he was a good kind man, he very
soon paid a visit to the cottage;
and his wife, who was also a real
benefactor to the poor, sent all

sorts of nourishing

things to the

old man and his son, and went
herself to see if anything could be
done to make them more corn-

fortable.

So poor

Thomas soon

got well again, and went back to
work even stronger than before;

she sent Mary

1

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

for he had had a long rest
plenty to eat and drink, w
he had often wanted before
illness.
But the good lady who had i

so much for

him was soon

taken ill, and it was found

she had caught the fever.

Then

there was great trouble all over
the village, for she was beloved
by everybody, rich and poor;
and Mrs. Field was once more

asked

if she would

come and

nurse her. This she willingly
agreed to do, and Thomas's old
father promised to come up every
night and sleep at the cottage,

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

that Mary might not
alone in the house.

be left

Mrs. Field found the clergy-
man's wife very ill indeed; so ill,

that for many days she

know any one,
life and death.
how much she
day long, and
hour at night,

did not

and lay between
Then it was seen
was beloved; all
even until a late
some gentle foot

was creeping to the door to whis-

per a few words of inquiry

of the

weeping servants; and scarcely a
child in the village that had a

garden
brought
for the

of its

own but

the prettiest nose-
sick lady's room.

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

But as

the doctor

did not

flowers, and fancied they made
his patient worse, he would not
allow these tokens of love to

there.

But Mrs.

Field

have them thrown

away, and kept them in water in
the hall;- for she said they

showed

the feeling of the

children, and it would be on her
conscience if she treated them as

rubbish.

At the end of

a fort-

night the lady began to get
better, and then there was indeed

rejoicin
loaded

and Mrs. Field

was

with thanks and praises

for all said that

would not

dear

g;

by every one,

THE INDUSTRIOUS G1RL

if it had not

been for her patience

and tenderness, and the unselfish
way in which she had nursed the
lady, day and night, she never
would have got through such an
illness. As for Mary's mother her-
self, she was truly pleased and

happy. But
sadly in want

she began to feel

of rest, and

very anxious to get back to her

own little house

daughter ;
and his w

and loving

but the clergyman
ife would not hear of

this, and said that as she had
stayed with them through the
grief so now she must share in

some of the rejoicing.

besides

And they

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

kept her

with them till she

quite strong again, and made her
eat good food, and drink a glass
of old wine every day, so that she

grew quite fat.

And when at

last, with her pocket

money

and her

basket

full of
full of

presents, her eyes full of

tears

and her heart fuller than any-
thing else of gratitude and joy,
they sent her back to her cottage,
Mary jumped for joy to see her

dear mother

looking

so well.

For Mary

had not been allowed

to go near the parsonage all the
time, lest she should catch the
fever. And how happy was

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

Mary to show her mother all the

work she had so

cheerfully and so

nicely done whilst alone: not a
single mistake had she made;
there was not one stitch to pick
out again. Mary had taken far

more pains

whilst

her mother

was away than

she had

done in her presence, though she
was always careful enough. But
those who really love never feel
quite separated from the object
that they love; and when the
eye can no longer see, the heart
is often far nearer to the beloved
one, and more anxious to fulfil all
his or her wishes and desires. It

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

is those -who love only themselves
that will take advantage of being
left alone, to neglect things in a
way they would be ashamed of if
watched.
You make me very happy, my
dear Mary, said her mother, em-
bracing her with tender love.
And you may be sure Mary was
full as happy as her mother to
hear those loving words.
Saturday was a busy day at the
cottage. The two little rooms
down stairs were always cleaned
then; and, as there was rather a
scarcity of water in the village,
Mary had to go and fetch what

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

was wanted
well at a li

was rather
little girl;

from a sort of public
ttle distance. This
hard work for the

but she was liked

much by every one in the village,
that she often found some strong
boy, who had been sent there for
water, and who would not mind
hurrying a little more over his

own work

that he might have

time to help the pretty girl, Mary,
to carry her full pail. Those who

are kind and willing to oblige,

are

almost always sure to find others
ready to help them in times of
need. One day, Mary went as

usual to the well:

she had

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

already
journeys

made

or three

backwards and forwards,

when Louis came up

from the farm.

found

his own

with his

Louis,

who

so hard to get through
work, was not likely to

have any time oi
help another;
never a thought

r will to spare to
and Mary had
that he would

offer to carry

her one

load of

water: she was only too sorry to
see him stay idling about so long
by the well, throwing in slates
and pebbles, and at last a poor
frog that was unhappy enough to
fall in his way; and when she

saw this she

hurried

back to the

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

cottage lest she should -be tempt-
ed to quarrel with him. When
she came to the well again Louis

was gone.
pail for

As Mary drew up her
the last time she saw

something white

water,

floating

on looking

in the
at it

closely she was very much sur-
prised to see it was a letter. It
was addressed to some one of the

name of Duke;

and from this

name, and also because Louis had

so lately

been at the well, Mary

thought he must certainly

dropped
leaning

it in by accident whilst
over at his play. She

felt quite sure of

have

this when she

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

observed

that the letter was not

soaked through,

and that even the

ink was not partly washed away,

as it must have been

if the

ing had been long in the water.
So, as the well was not very far

from the farm,

she thought

would be better to run over there

at once with the letter,

which

might

be of

consequence.

leaving her pail and

pitcher

the mossy well, for there were no

thieves to

fear

in Groveby,

she ran.

Her first

idea had been

to find Louis,

and ask him about

the letter, for she was afraid if
any one at the farm knew how

writ-

away

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

careless he had been, it might get
him into serious trouble; for it
was well known he was not trust-
ed, and was only kept at work
there for his father's sake. But,

on running into

the farm-yard,

the first person Mary met was
Mrs. Duke, going out with a large
basket and her best shawl on to
make purchases in the village for
the coming week. Seeing Mary
come in so quickly, with a letter

in her hand,

Mrs. Duke was afraid

there was something the matter;
and, holding out her hand, she
said, What is it, my dear; is
that letter for me ?

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

Poor Mary stopped and turned
very red. But she was not like
Louis, who on the shortest notice
could make up a story to hide
what he liked with an unblushing
cheek. To speak the truth, and
that at once, was Mary's habit and

had been from a child;

look-

ing full in Mrs. Duke's face, she
said in a low voice, as if anxious
no one else should hear how care-
less Louis had been:

Well, ma'am,

accident
letter in,

well just

I'm afraid

Louis

ust now dropped
for he was at the

before me, and when I

drew up the next pail of water

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

And you see, as it
wet through, and

has the name of Duke on it, I
thought it must have been so.
But I am sure it must have been
an accident, and I was going to
try and find him, and let him
come and tell you so himself.
Mrs. Duke looked at the letter
with a face in which excessive
anger gradually took the place of

surprise.
I am

very glad

indeed

happened to meet me, my dear,
before you came across that

wicked

she said, who would

only have made away with

this was in it.
was not quite

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

letter and I should never have
seen it again. Do you know,
Mary, I gave him that letter to
put in the post three days ago.
And, more than that, when he
came back from the village that
day, I asked him whether he had
posted it; and he told me that
he had. Now you see he must
have been playing there, or sleep-
ing or something, and have miss-
ed the post, and then told me
a lie, because he was afraid I
should find him out if it had
been delayed a day. No doubt
he thought, if he made away with
the letter, I and my dear sister-

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

in-law, to whom this letter was

going, would

think

it had been

lost at

things
they sh.

the Post

Office; for

do happen oftener
would. Now Louis sh

this very night.
such a wicked

such
than

iall a~o

w-t
I won't have----
I won't have

about

place any longer; I shall be quite
afraid he will be teaching my
little ones some of his bad tricks.

even if he does not do

I really cannot put up with
goings on any longer.
Mary was shocked too

for speech :
have dreamed

she could

of such

a deep-laid

plan for concealing a fault.

AAnd

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

then, to think that she
the means of finding i

had been

t out,

that Louis was to lose his place in
consequence, was too much for

her, and she burst

into tears.

The good-natured farmer's

wife

guessed the cause of her trouble

at once, and laying her
the little girl's shoulder,

hand on
she said,

You must not take it to heart,

Mary,

because you really

done me a good turn by finding
this- out for me. I might have
gone on trusting Louis more and

more,

till at last

some very

serious mischief might have come

I am quite sure you

have

upon us.

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

had none but kind

feelings to-

wards him when you came here,
and I promise you he shall never

know who it was found the

letter

in the well.

Here, take this,

added, pulling out a shilling
from her pocket, and buy yourself

something to

cheer

you up a

little. They've got some very
pretty silver thimbles at Martin's,
down the street, for a shilling
a piece.

You
ma'am,

are very
said Mary,

back Mrs. Duke's

kind indeed,
gently putting
hand; but I

could not take anything

for do-

I should never be able

ing this.

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

to look at the

thimble

pleasure, now poor Louis is to be

turned

away:

it would

like the price of his disgrace.
But I thank you very much, all
the same.

Ah, said

Mrs. Duke,

if Louis

had but a little of your disposi-
tion in him, Mary, it would be a
blessed thing for him.

You see,

ma'am,

mother, sighed Mary.

he has no
And then,

fearing that her mother would
wondering at her long stay, M

hastily bid

Mrs. Duke good af-

ternoon, and turned back

with

It was indeed

with

heavy heart.

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

as Mrs.

Duke had guessed.

had been sent with the letter in
good time, but had stayed play-
ing by the way, till post hour was

past; and then, afraid

of putting

it in the box for next day's post,
lest his delay should be found out
when the letter was delivered-
for Louis was very cunning, and
always took everything into ac-
count when he wanted to screen
himself-he determinedto tell his

mistress that he

letter
made

had posted the

in time, and then to have

away with

He had

heard complaints made, once or
twice, of letters being lost in the

Louis

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

Post Office,

and thought

would be sure to be accounted
for in that manner when missed.
His idle habits made him forget
all about the letter till Saturday

afternoon;
pocket for

roun

when,
a bit

d the unhappy

feeling in

string to tie
frog that he

was going to throw in, his hand
fell upon the letter. Fearing lest
his father should find it out when
his clothes were changed for Sun-

day, he

suddenly dropped it

the well; and

though the next

minute he felt it would have been

safer to put it into the

fire, and

he had not given way to

one

wished

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

his first impulse,

yet, as it was

gone there was no help for it;
and he tried to console himself
by thinking that paper soon soaks

away in
reached
forgotten

water,

and before

the farm had already

all about

then, was his
his mistress

terror when he saw

making

towards him in the barn, with the

very

same letter i

a

All power of speech
from him. He felt tl
first lie he had told

having posted it,
himself of the

her hand.
was gone
hat, by the
her about

he had deprived

only

refuge he

could then have found; namely,

What,

to

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

say that
that aft

he had forgotten it,

erwa

out of his
whilst at

rds it had dropped
pocket by accident

the well.

showed his terror and

His face
confusion.

Ah, you know you're found out

now, don't you?

said the

farmer's

wife.
father

Now

may

and tell

your

look out for

another place for you, for I won't
have such a good-for-nothing boy
about my house any more. And
you may think yourself very well
off that your master is out, or I
am quite sure he would give you
such a beating before you go, as

you long enough

would make

88 THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

remember why you were

away.
Louis said not a word.
felt in his heart that the

was only deferred for

But he
beating

a few hours.

For his father could not fail to
know the reason of his being
turned off, and was not at all
likely to pass over such a fault
without severe punishment, be-

sides the anger that he

would

feel towards the

throwing1
where

naught

away a go

he got

two

ty boy for
od place,
or three

shillings a week and plenty of
food every day. Afraid to go
home, he hung about the farm

sent

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

just out of
frightened.
the fear of

stronger in his
think himself

sight, wretched and
But by degrees, as
is father's anger grew

mind, he began to
very ill-used by

Mrs. Duke; and quite forget-
ting all the many times that she
had passed over his faults rather
than expose him to punishment,
and the ungrateful way in which
he had still gone on doing all he
could to vex and annoy her, he
at last felt so vindictive towards
her for being, as he was foolish
enough to believe, the cause of his
trouble, which of course he had

brought entirely

upon himself,

NU THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

that he was so very naughty as to
try and contrive some mischief

against her.
bad thought

And, just as this

came into

his mind,

he happened to be passing by a
little road-side pond, where some
favourite white ducks belong-
ing to the farm were wading
about. The weather was hot and

the pond
they were
And besi

was almost dry, so

that

within his reach.

ides,

knew Louis, who h

them,

poor things
ad often fed

and therefore they made

no effort to get out of his

way.

And now I must stop for one
moment, just to warn my little

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY.

readers how very needful it is for

us to put

thought

away,

at once, any

which tempts us to do

wrong, if we would escape falling
into sin. For the same bad

influence
thoughts
provide

that suggests these evil
is sure to be ready to
some opportunity that

very instant for carrying

them

out. But Louis was in no mood

for resisting
contrary, he
could to che

evil then: on the
was doing all he
,rish every bad pas-

sion as it rose in his heart;

at sight

of the ducks, which

knew were much valued by
mistress, he rejoiced that

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

means of revenging

himself

at hand.

Plunging

into the

quagmire, he seized one of the
poor things and wrung its neck.
But the noise made by the un-

fortunate

bird in his unskilful

frightened

they all set off

the others, and
waddling and

screaming as loud as they could.
Louis was hastening after another,
when he found himself caught by
the collar; and what was his

horror to find

angry

father

witness of the scene.
was also provided wi

stout stick,

with whi

And Ben

ith a good
ich he had

been in search of the bad boy,

were

hands

AND MISCHIEVOUS BOY. 93

whose conduct had just been fully
laid before him by Mrs. Duke.
What greater proof could Ben
desire than he had that instant
seen, with his own eyes, of the
extreme naughtiness of his only
son!
We will leave Louis in the hands
of his justly-displeased father, to
receive the punishment he had so
richly deserved, and which we
may be sure was not made lighter
by the last act of mischief; and we
will turn to a more pleasing pic-
ture-Mary and her mother, seat-
ed the same evening in their clean
and cheerful cottage.- The rooms

THE INDUSTRIOUS GIRL

were all as neat as if some fairy had
been helping the little girl; and
the setting sun, as it lighted up
the clear panes of the open case-
ment, seemed to smile with plea-
sure on her handiwork.
Mary had been telling her mo-
ther all about Louis and the letter.
For she never kept any secret
from Mrs. Field, who was not one
likely to repeat anything that
would create mischief. She was
very sorry indeed to hear the tale,
for she had known Louis's mother
when they were both children,
and took a warm interest in the
poor boy himself. Though, know-