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53
KATIE'S GOOD-NATURE;
OR,
THE TORN JACKET.
BY
THE HON. MRS. GREENE,
Author of Cushions and Corners," "Gods Silver," etc.
WITH ILLUSTRATIONS
S LONDON AND NEW YORK:
FREDERICK WARNJE AND CO.
1887.
CONTENTS.
LOOEY'S TROUBLE.
KATIE'S SELF-SACRIFICE.
UNSELFISHNESS REWARDED.
I
KATIE'S GOOD-NATURE;
OR,
THE TORN JACKET.
-- CHAP. I.
S LOOEY'S
TROUBLE.
ELL, Looey,
my dear,
what has
gone wrong
now ?" said
'I rs. Browne,
-_ _indly, as she
lifted her head
from the book she was reading, and
looked at the little disconsolate
figure standing in the doorway.
Katie's Good-nature.
"Come over here and tell me what
is the matter, for I did not expect
to see such a sad face as yours on
the day of Aunt Mary's party."
Looey made no reply to this kind
appeal of her mother's, but remained
leaning against the doorway, swing-
ing one foot backwards and for-
wards, and chewing the corner of
her black lustre pinafore.
I suppose Martha says that she
is too busy to have your new hat
trimmed in time-eh, Looey dear?
If so, perhaps if you brought it to
me, I would give her a helping
hand."
"No, it's not that: the hat is
finished and upstairs on my bed,
but I'm not going to wear it-I
Looey's Trouble.
don't intend to I ;i
go to the party Ii
at all;" and l' '
without wait- i
ing for further i.
explanation,
Looey shut the
door of the ,
drawing-room
with a bang,
and rushed up-
stairs to the
school-room.
Mrs. Browne,
though well ac-
customed to
these sudden
fits of grief on zooey.
Looey's part, put down her book
Katie's Good-nature.
and followed her immediately up-
stairs, hoping to find out what was
wrong, and, if possible, to soothe
Looey's ruffled spirit; but the scene
which met her eyes on opening the
door did not help to reassure her.
There were her two little girls, Katie
and Looey, seated opposite each
other on either side of the fireplace,
both of them in tears and looking
thoroughly miserable.
"What is the matter? what can
have happened, children?" she asked
in real concern, for Katie's tears
were of much rarer occurence than
Looey's, and her grief seemed now
quite as real as her sister's.
Neither child answered at once,
and it was only when her mother
Looey's Trouble.
seemed really vexed and uneasy at
their silence that Katie, making an
effort to control her tears, began a
somewhat confused explanation.
"Looey says she won't go to
Aunt Mary's, and I have said all I
can to beg her to go; and the more
I beg, the more she says she won't,
and I don't care to go without her."
But why, my dear Looey, why
do you not wish to go? Are you
ill, or has any one said anything to
prevent you from going? Was Miss
Fitzroy vexed with her at her les-
sons?" And Mrs. Browne, hope-
less of obtaining an explanation from
Looey, turned again towards Katie.
"No, mamma; it's nothing about
lessons, or anything of that kind.
Katie's Good-nature.
It's all about her jacket: she says
she cannot wear her new one, be-
cause it's all torn and stained, and
her old one is too shabby."
"Her new jacket torn and stained!
My dear children, how can that be?
It was only last Sunday, walking
to church, I thought how nice they
both looked. What can she have
done to spoil it in so short a time?"
Indeed, mamma, it was not her
fault," pleaded Katie, earnestly.
"It was the day we were all gather-
ing damsons in the garden, and her
sleeve caught on a sharp branch
that was sticking out, and was torn;
and when she ran into the kitchen
with the fruit, she found that the
damsons she had carried in her lap
Looey's Trouble.
had all rolled out upon the front of
her jacket, and one or two were
crushed; and though she rubbed it
ever so hard, she: -
could not get out '- '"
the stain. In-
deed, mamma,
she did her best
it was not her
fault," urged i s
Katie again, as ,
she observed .a_--
vexation too
plainly manifest- Gatring D)amsons.
ed in her mother's face.
Looey knows quite well herself
that it was her fault," replied Mrs.
Browne, gravely. "I am afraid,
Looey, if you cannot make up your
Katie's Good-nature.
mind to wear your white one, you
will either have to put on your every-
day brown cloth cloak, or stay at
home."
A look of disgust at the name of
the every-day cloak and a sulky
shrug of the shoulders was Looey's
only reply to her mother's kindly-
meant suggestion; so Mrs. Browne,
not caring to reason any further
with her foolish, disobedient child,
went out of the room and shut the
door.
"Looey, where is your jacket?"
asked Katie presently, in a very
mournful voice, as she heard her
mother closing the drawing-room
door behind her, and knew that no
further help could be looked for
Looey's Trouble.
from that quarter. Where is your
jacket? tell me, Looey. Perhaps I
could mend it, or do something for
it."
I don't know where it is,"replied
Looey, angrily. If it were mended
a hundred times over, I would not
wear it. Mamma is very unkind;
she won't look for anything for me.
She does not care whether I go or
not, and I don't care either, I 'm
sure."
Indeed, Looey, mamma is not
unkind; she wishes very much for
you to come, and so do I. If you
will only let me try, I will sponge
out all the stains, and darn the
sleeves, and make it look beautiful.
May I, Looey, please?"
Katie's Good-nature.
You may do anything you like,"
replied Looey, in the same cross and
discontented tone she had spoken in
before. You may sponge and darn
as much as you please, but I shan't
go to Aunt Mary's. You know how
particular she is; and you would
not wear such a thing yourself,
though you are trying to make me
do so." And Looey buried her face
in the cushions of the sofa.
Aunt Mary was a very, very old
lady; she was their mother's aunt,
and she was even many years older
than their grandmother. She lived
in a beautiful large country house
of her own, surrounded by a splen-
did park and the most fairy-like
gardens and pleasure-grounds. She
Looey's Trouble.
The Pleasure Gardens.
was the very neatest and tidiest old
lady the children had ever seen in
their lives. There was never a
speck on her snowy-white necker-
chief, and the lace frills of her cap
sat in such precise order, she looked
Katie's Good-nature.
as though she could never have
rested herself on a sofa, or leaned
her head upon a cushion. Not only
was she neat herself, but she loved
to see order in everything and every
one around her. And as Katie still
gazed ruefully into the embers, she
felt the conviction stronger and
stronger in her mind that, let her
sponge Looey's jacket ever so care-
fully, or darn its sleeve ever so
neatly, still both stain and darn
would be sure to come under the
searching though not unkindly gaze
of Aunt Mary.
At last a new thought seemed to
dawn upon Katie's mind, for the
tears which had been dropping
silently upon her black lustre apron
Looey's Trouble.
suddenly stood still in her eyes, and
the coals grew twice their size in
the grate, as she gazed through them
in the earnest pursuit of the newly-
formed project.
Presently she rose, and with a
very deep sigh pushed back her
chair. She had been fighting a hard
battle with self all the time-a very
hard battle; and though she knew
she had conquered in this strife, and
knew she was going to do the thing
that was right, still her heart felt
very hot; and she tried, as she
crossed the room towards the door,
not to look at her selfish sister,
who still lay curled up, like a lazy
hedgehog, in sulky anger upon the
sofa.
Katie's Goodn-vt;e.
Slowly she went upstairs to the
bed-room which she and Looey
shared between them, and having
shut and bolted the door, she opened
the press in which Looey kept her
clothes, and searched about for the
unhappy jacket which was the cause
of all this trouble and heartache.
Her own pretty white mantle lay
on the bed, as fresh and clean almost
as the first day she had worn it;
and beside it her new leather gloves,
her blue necktie, and her little
ermine muff, which her mother had
given her but a few days before;
but Katie scarcely trusted herself
to look at them, and turned again
with feverish haste to continue the
search within the wardrobe.
gW
Aia
Arrivziz at Aunt arj?'.
Looey's Trouble.
At first she could not find the
jacket anywhere, and she fancied
that Looey had taken it away and
Katie's Search.
hidden it, that she might not be
compelled to wear it at the party;
but presently, as she turned over
some old faded dresses and rubbish
Katie's Good-nature.
in an under drawer within the ward-
robe, she found it rolled up in a heap,
and thrust away in a corner; and
when she shook it out and looked
at it with a sinking heart, it must
be confessed it presented but a sorry
spectacle.
The stains were larger and the
rent in the sleeve was wider than
she had expected to find them; and
for a moment Katie's heart shrank
from her self-imposed task. Slowly,
very slowly, she began at length to
sponge out the crimson juice of
the damsons, though the more she
sponged it, it seemed to her the
stain grew wider and wider; but
as the clock struck four, Katie set
herself in earnest to her work, for
Looey's Trouble.
she knew there was but one hour
more before they must begin to
dress for the party.
She sponged, she rubbed, she.
combed, till in some spots the fur
grew almost bald beneath her vigos
rous efforts; and when it was vain
to sponge further, she threaded her
needle, and set about the task of
darning the torn sleeve.
It was a very awkward tear to
mend, for the skin of the fur gave
way constantly beneath her needle,
and if she drew her thread tightly,
it made a grievous pucker; but at
length, as the clock struck the half-
hour, her labour of love was com-
pleted, and she placed the offending
jacket on the bed beside her other
Katie's Good-nature.
articles of outdoor dress. There
was still a faint rosy flush over the
front breadth of the fur, deepening
into red in patches; but Katie hoped
that a muff judiciously held might
hide the more glaring portions of
the stain. She had scarcely turned
away her eyes from her last inspec-
tion of her work, when she heard a
step outside, and in a moment more
Looey's voice angrily demanding
why the door was bolted.
Katie hastened to unfasten it, for
there was now but a short half-hour
before the time of starting, and in
her unselfish zeal she forgot to ac-
quaint Looey with the sacrifice she
was about to make, and urged her
to lose no time in dressing for the
Looey's Trouble.
party, as the carriage would be
round immediately at the door.
"I told you I was not going,"
replied Looey in a still more implac-
able voice than she had used down-
stairs; "and yet, though you knew
I was so miserable, you went up-
stairs and shut yourself up here for
a whole hour, and left me all alone
by myself in the school-room. I
suppose you thought," she added,
with a real sob of disappointment,
"that I should not be lonely enough
all the time you were away amusing
yourself at the party."
The sight of Looey's grief, and
the unjust accusation brought a-
gainst her, both prevented Katie
from immediately answering her;
Katie's Good-nature.
but she pointed with her hand to-
wards the jacket which lay beside
her muff upon the bed.
"Where did you find it?" asked
Looey, now almost wild with vexa-
tion as she thought Katie had been
trying to outwit her. "I hid it
away on purpose, where I thought
no one would look for it; but you
might have saved yourself the trou-
ble, for I won't wear it!" And
taking the jacket with no gentle
hand from the bed, she threw it
upon the hearthrug.
Oh don't-please don't," cried
Katie, rushing forward to the ruscue.
" I have been all this time cleaning
it, and now it will be as dirty as
ever." And with flushed cheeks
Looey's Trouble.
she lifted it from the ground and
brushed the dust from the sleeve,
which had fallen amongst the ashes.
I told you I would not wear it,
if you darned it a hundred times
over," retorted Looey, who grew
more and more disturbed in temper,
as she felt herself more decidedly in
the wrong. You know you would
not wear it yourself, such a sight as
it is." And Looey turned away to-
wards the window, trembling with
a guilty vexation.
"I am going to wear it myself,"
replied Katie in a quiet voice, as
she drew her arm gently through
the maimed sleeve of the jacket.
Looey turned sharply round at
these words, and gazed at her sister
Katie's Good-nature.
in hot unbelief. Nonsense! she
replied, quickly, "you are not going
to do anything of the kind-I won't
let you."
Katie did not answer her; she
felt she would only aggravate her
sister more by reasoning with her;
but she quietly drew on the other
sleeve, and buttoned the jacket down
the front.
"There is no use, I tell you, you
may just as well keep your own, for
I am not going to the party;" and
Looey put her head on her sister's
lap to hide the tears which she could
no longer repress.
"Don't, please don't cry that
way, Looey," urged Katie, good-
naturedly; "we shall both go to
i_
Looey's Trouble.
"Please don't cry that way."
the party with red eyes, and what
will Aunt Iary think ? Please stop
crying. I don't really care what
jacket I wear-indeed, Looey, I
don't, and when I have my muff,
Katie's Good-nature.
no one will see either the stains or
the tear."
But Looey still kept her head
bent upon her hands. She was
feeling all the bitter pain which an
unselfish action often unconsciously
causes to a really selfish mind, forc-
ing upon it by contrast the sight of
its own unworthiness and sin, and
Looey found it even more impos-
sible to turn round and thank Katie
now for her generous sacrifice, than
she would have done an hour ago
to put on the torn jacket and start
off for the party.
Katie's Self-sacrifice.
CHAPTER II.
KATIE'S SELF-SACRIFICE.
HE drive to
w' Aunt Mary's
wasall through
.? .-: : quiet country
-lanes or pretty
2'... _,r wooded glens,
where the trees
Were ruddy
'-Y w i th the
--- '. Iautumin tints.
Everything smelt so sweet and
looked so beautiful in the serene
glow of an early winter sunset,
that Katie grew more and more
atlie's CGood-natlue.
tranquil in her mind as they rolled
along, and even Looey's ruffled
spirit could not resist the influence
of the evening drive and the an-
ticipation of so many promised
pleasures.
As the carriage drew nearer and
nearer to the turreted gateway of
The Cedars, many more vehicles
came in sight, some in front of them
and some behind them, and not a
few drawn by high-mettled horses
passed them on the road, with their
burden of gaily and fashionably-
dressed children.
Just for a moment a hot sting of
pain seemed to pass right through
poor Katie's breast, as one carriage
rolled past them-one which she
Katie's Self-sacriice.
knew quite well, and in which was
seated Marion Strangways, hergreat,
great friend, dressed in her new seal-
skin jacket, which her father had
just brought her from Paris, and
the pretty little sealskin hat to
match, with a white ostrich feather
in the front, just tipped with the
green gloss off a peacock's breast.
Looey, who by this time had en-
tirely recovered her composure,
nodded and smiled to Marion quite
cheerfully, and even turned round
in the carriage so as to take in all
the etceteras of Marion's new attire,
whilepoor Katie's eyes involuntarily
reverted to her own unfortunate
jacket, and a very long unhappy-
sounding sigh escaped from her.
8
Katie's Good-naztuae.
"Look, Katie dear, at the beau-
tiful red band of light behind the
fir-trees!" cried Mrs. Browne, ap-
parently unconscious of the painful
thoughts struggling within her
daughter's mind: "the sun must
be going down already; it will be
nearly dark, I should think, by the
time we reach Aunt Mary's door."
Katie instantly looked up, and
nodded brightly, for she felt the
kind encouragement her mother's
words were intended to convey, and
comforted herself in the thought
that, in the gloaming of their ar-
rival, her clothes might pass muster
in the crowd, and that afterwards,
in all probability, they would take
off their outdoor clothes, and put
.Katie's Seif-sacrifrce.
them aside in another room until
the time for their departure.
But, alas for poor Katie! the sun
had not quite gone down when they
drew up in front of Aunt Mary's
pillared portico, and its dying light
fell right across thechildren's figures
as they descended from the carriage
and alighted amidst a host of assem-
bled guests, who, of course, having
little else to do at this moment,
and being chiefly composed of
young, inquisitive minds, scanned
anxiously the dress and tout-
ensemble of the new arrivals.
Katie could not help feeling that
many eyes were fixed upon her as
she advanced to greet Aunt Mary,
whose easy-chair had been placed
Katie's Good-nature.
beneath the portico to receive her
guests, and her face, usually smiling
and joyous, betrayed a most un-
happy consciousness of self.
"Good evening, Kate, my dar-
ling, and you, Looey dear, I am
glad to see you," cried the cheery
voice of Aunt Mary, as she rose up
to meet them. But how comes it
that you are all so late ? I thought
you would have been here in time
to help me to receive my friends.
The archery is all over, and the
croquet-ground is nearly deserted;
however, better late than never."
Here a slight pause occurred in
Aunt Mary's kindly reception, while
her keen eyes sought first to un-
ravel the uneasiness apparent on
Katies Self-sacrifice.
!r
, ^ 2-- ~.. ^ ^
"''Katie advanced to meet her Aunt"
:" L -- '
~____ :
-_
_
"Kantie adva/nced' to mleet Iter nlmt."
IKaie's Good-naln're.
the faces of both her little nieces,
and then travelled slowly over every
article of Katie's outdoor garments,
so curiously at variance with the
usual neat arrangement of her dress.
For a moment she glanced with
a puzzled air from the. children to
their mother, but, recollecting her-
self, she continued her cordial wel-
come. Better late than never,"
she repeated, as she wrung the
hands of both children. I think,
though, my dears, as the sun is
setting, and these autumn even-
ings are treacherous, it is nearly
time to withdraw our forces indoors.
Looey dear, you go and summon
all your little friends from the cro-
quet-ground and shrubberies, and
Katie's Self-sacrifice.
all you young ladies and gentlemen
who prefer to remain outside for
the present, remember, when the
gong sounds, it is time to come in-
doors and take your places for the
magic, whilst you and I, Katie,
must come inside, for I sadly need
some one to give me a helping
hand in the arrangement of one or
two things for the conjuror, which
I could not well manage by myself.
You, Anna," she continued, turning
to her elder niece, Mrs. Brown,
"you must receive the remainder
of my guests who have not yet ar-
rived, while I go and have a final in-
terview with our Japanese friends."
Oh, how silently thankful Katie
felt in her heart for being thus
Katie's Good-nature.
quietly removed from the public
gaze! and she followed her aunt
across the wide hall and up the
handsome staircase to her room
with grateful steps. It must be
confessed she longed to unburden
her whole heart to Aunt Mary, so
as to free herself from the accusa-
tion of untidiness or careless indif-
ference; but this confession would,
in reality, be treachery to Looey,
and Katie determined, come what
might, as far as truth would allow
her, to set a seal upon her lips.
Here, Katie dear, you can place
your hat and jacket upon my bed,"
said her aunt, kindly, as she closed
the door behind her, "for I shall
want your assistance in a great
Katie's Self-sacrifce.
many things which you could not
manage so easily in your outdoor
clothes. Let me help you to untie
your hat." And Aunt Mary.with
neat fingers sought to untwist the
somewhat rope-like knot into which
the strings of Katie's old hat had
got fastened.
"Oh, thank you, Aunt Mary, I
think I can manage it myself," cried
Katie, seeking anxiously to take the
knot into her own hand. "Please
let me undo it, Aunt Mary: I know
how I fastened it myself."
How comes it that Looey has
on her new hat and you your old
one?" asked her aunt, very quietly
and kindly, as she relinquished the
knot into Kate's keeping.
Katie's Good-nature.
"Oh, Martha was not able to
finish mine in time; it was only
half trimmed when the carriage
came round to the door, and we
were so late already, we could not
wait any longer," stammered Kate,
uneasily.
"But Looey's was trimmed in
time, and looks very neat and
pretty," continued Aunt Mary, in-
terrogatively, while she quietly un-
buttoned her niece's jacket and drew
it gently from her arms.
Yes, Martha trimmed Looey's
first, because, you know, Looey's
hat is a little smaller than mine,
and she thought-at least I thought
-she would have time to finish
mine afterwards."
AKie's Scti-sacrifce.
"A very good excuse, but very
bad logic," laughed Aunt Mary,
kindly; "and why, may I ask, did
you wear Looey's jacket instead of
your own? Was it on the same
principle that being so much smaller,
it would take less time to put on-
eh, Katie dear ?"
And Aunt Mary's bright inquisi-
tive eyes looked towards -Katie for
an answer.
"How did you know it was
Looey's?" cried Katie, in hot con-
fusion, while the red blush which
rushed over every inch of her face
forced the tingling tears into her
eyes. I thought you would never
guess it, I was sure;" and Katie,
not knowing what further to add,
Katie's Good-nature.
turned away her face, and tried
hard by staring at the picture over
the mantelpiece to keep back the
sob which had been struggling this
ten minutes in her throat.
"Ah, little birds tell me many
things," said Aunt Mary, glancing
for a moment curiously at the jacket,
which she afterwards folded neatly,
and put aside on the bed, all the
time good-naturedly ignoring her
niece's confusion. "But I must not
pretend to be a greater conjuror than
I really am. Looey's initials, you
see, are marked on a piece of tape
inside the jacket, and I really could
not help seeing them, nor the long
darn which, I suppose, also helped
to delay Martha in her work."
Katie's Self-sacrifice.
No-no, I darned it myself,"
gulped Kate, in what seemed to
her a necessary exculpation of Mar-
tha's needlework. "I-I only knew
it,.was torn this morning, and I
could not do it any better, for the
skin burst nearly every time I put
the needle into it. I know I must
have looked dreadfully untidy when
I got out of the carriage; but in-
deed, indeed, Aunt Mary, I could
not help it."
"Indeed, indeed, my dear little
Katie, you could have helped it. if
you had liked," replied her aunt,
with a little dry laugh: you could
not persuade me that you put it on
by mistake, or liked it better than
your own; but perhaps you pre-
Katie's Good-nature.
ferred helping another,-eh? How-
ever, never mind, my love: I con-
fess your turn-out was not as rich
or pretty as Marion Strangways',but
'handsome is that handsome does,'
and though I love neatness and tidi-
ness, still I am not so blind yet but I
can admire a kind face under an old
hat, and a generous heart under a
stained jacket. Come now, dry your
eyes, Katie darling, and let us go
downstairs; there will be nobody to
see you but the conjurors and my-
self, and we shall all be too busy
preparing for our friends to have
time to look at each other."
Before these kind words Katie's
grief melted away. She smoothed
her hair and put on as bright a face
Katie's Self-sacrice.
as she could, and followed her aunt
downstairs, and she soon, in the
bustle of preparation and the excite-
ment of looking on,forgot altogether
her day's trouble, and not one of
the children enjoyed their magic
more heartily, or entered more com-
pletely into the evening's fun and
entertainment than she did.
Katie's Good-nature.
CHAPTER III.
UNSELFISHNESS REWARDED.
ERHAPS, out of
the whole party,
the one who en-
joyed herself least
during the long
evening was
Looey. The mise-
rable conviction kept thrusting
itself upon her most unseasonably,
that she had behaved selfishly and
unkindly all the day. When she
glanced up at her mother's usually
kind and pleasant face, she had no
Unseldshness Rewarded.
responsive look, or glance of sympa-
thizing love. Her aunt's manner,
too, seemed less warm and friendly
towards her than was customary,
and altogether she felt strangely
alone and miserable among the
crowd of happy, joyous children,
whose hearts were not burdened
with the same load of conscious
guilt; and when at length the plea-
sures of the evening were ended, and
the carriage drew up to the door,
Katie almost immediately fell asleep
with her head on her mother's
shoulder, while Looey, kept wide
awake by the stings of a wounded
conscience, wished earnestly that
the day could begin over again, that
she might act differently, and win
Kalie's Good-nature.
back the ease of mind, the love and
sympathy of her mother, and the
approbation of her aunt.
But, alas! days of sin cannot be
so easily lived over again, nor can
ungenerous actions be so easily for-
gotten by those who witness them,
and many days rolled heavily by
for Looey under the conscious ban
of her mother's displeasure and dis-
appointment, and under the still
stronger conviction that, by her
selfishness and wilful temper, she
had offended and displeased God.
From Katie's mind, on the con-
trary, all thoughts of the day's
struggle, as far as her own feelings
were concerned, had passed quickly
away. She only remembered the
Unselfishness Rewarded
wonderful scenes in the magic lan-
tern, and the almost incredible feats
of the Japanese troupe, and many
a pleasant half-hour she spent with
her mother, talking over and guess-
ing at the manner in which the
tricks had been performed. In fact,
the whole affair of the jacketwould,
in all probability, have died com-
pletely and for ever from her mind,
had not a most unexpected and, to
her, amazing event occurred a few
days later, which brought the mat-
ter vividly back to her mind, and
stamped it for ever in Looey's heart
in connection with her own selfish-
ness and vanity.
It happened thus. On the Satur-
day succeeding the day of their
Katie's Good-nature.
aunt's party, just as the children
were sitting down to their tea in
the school-room, having -chosen
and prepared their Sunday por-
tions of Scripture to repeat to their
mother on the following day, a loud
ring was heard at the hall bell,
and presently a man's voice was
heard in the vestibule below, com-
municating some intelligence to
the servant who had opened the
door.
The children were not allowed to
leave the school-room, or to look
over the banisters on the arrival of
either visitors or friends, and al-
though Katie felt sure she heard
her own name mentioned, she per-
suaded Looey to remain quietly in
j:J
U,.seliskness Rewarded.
SThe i' girls gathered round the parcels
" The li'le girls gathered round the parcels."
Katie's Good-nature.
her place, knowing that if there was
anything that really concerned her,
they would hear it in good time.
They had not long to wait, for
the school-room door was presently
thrown open, and Martha entered,
bearing in her arms a large brown
paper parcel and a blue bonnet-box,
both addressed to Katie. With
much and anxious beating of the
heart, and trembling of fingers, the
two little girls gathered round the
parcels, and unfastened the many
tnots that guarded them, and when
all the brown paper was removed
and the lid raised from the box, out
came a beautiful sealskin jacket
and a hat trimmed just like Marion
Strangways', with a white ostrich
Unsefish/ness Rewardead
feather and a beautiful tuft taken
from a peacock's breast. They were
both addressed to Katie, and inside
the sleeve of the jacket was a note,
also directed to her, written in her
aunt's well-known small but regular
handwriting.
Katie blushed a great deal as she
read the contents of the letter; but
she seemed anxious that Looey
should not see it, and having
glanced rather hastily through it,
she crumpled it up and thrust it
into her pocket.
"Oh, Looey! I wish you had
been sent one also," she cried, as
her sister nervously smoothed the
beautiful brown skin of the jacket,
and strove valiantly to keep back
Katie's Good-nature.
her own keen sense of mortification
and pain.
No, Katie, you deserved them,
and I didn't." These words ac-
tually burst from Looey's lips;
they were the result of a week's
misery of mind, as well as of the
last hour's careful study of the por-
tion of Scripture she had chosen
for her Sunday's repetition.
Katie looked up in amazement,
for she had not seen the secret
grief at work all the long week in
poor Looey's heart, and this was
the first allusion, or even recogni-
tion, of Katie's goodness which
Looey had made since the morning
of Aunt Mary's party.
"I tell you what we will do,"
Unselfshness Rewarded.
cried Katie, good-naturedly, I will
keep the jacket, and you, Looey,
shall have the hat."
But Looey had already rushed
from the room, and hidden herself
behind a large trunk in the lumber-
roofn. She could no longer keep
back the bitter tears of mortification
called forth by the sight of her
sister's well-deserved presents, and
knowing how selfish was her sorrow,
she desired most earnestly to hide
it from both Katie's eyes and her
mother's.
It was a very hard struggle for
poor Looey. Again and again she
raised herself up from the ground
in the dark, and dried her eyes,
thinking she had conquered her
Katie's Good-nature.
grief, but again and again her tears
and sobs broke forth; and though
she heard Katie calling her and
searching for her all through the
house, she could not make up her
mind to come out of the hiding-
place.
At last the struggle came to an
end, as all such struggles would do,
if we only had the moral courage
to face them at once in a strength
not our own, but given us from
above. Looey rose from her crouch-
ing position on the floor, placed her
elbows on the old trunk, and covered
her eyes with her hands. It was
only a short prayer, a few broken
words uttered by a very contrite
little heart, but they had their calm-
U.., '.<. :.;s Rewaric'd.
ing effect; and Looey, having
smoothed her hair in her room, and
bathed her eyes, rejoined her sister
in the school-room, and after tea,
when they descended to the draw-
ing-room, Looey was loudest in her
praises of her Aunt Mary's kind-
ness and thoughtfulness, and re-
jected with decision all offers of a
division of the gifts.
Mrs. Browne found it very hard
to account for the unusual gentle-
ness of Looey's manner, and the
unselfish pleasure she showed in
Katie's happiness, and long after
the children had retired to bed she
pondered over it all in her mind.
The next day, however, brought
the solution of the puzzle, and
,Kalie's Good-nature.
opened her eyes to the struggle
which had been going on in hei
little girl's heart. When Looey
brought her Bible to her mother's
bedside early on Sunday morning,
there was something in her manner,
something in the expression of her
eyes, which arrested Mrs. Browne's
attention; and as her little girl re-
peated the texts she had selected
and learnt by heart the evening
before, the trembling voice and
downcast look confirmed her mother
in the idea that she had chosen th,
subject expressly as being appli-
cable to her own faults and short-
comings.
The words of the Bible which she
repeated aloud were these: "Whose
Unselfishness Rewarded.
adorning let it not be that outward
adorning of putting on of apparel:
but let it be the hidden man of the
heart, even the ornament of a meek
and quiet spirit, which is in the
sight of God of great price."
Mrs. Browne usually explained
the morning's reading to each of
her little girls separately, dra ing
for them the moral the text was
intended to convey, and pointing it
specially to the difficulties and
temptations they were likely to
meet with during the coming week,
or going back with them over the
occurrences of the past one. But
this morning she said nothing; no
words of hers could have strength-
ened the moral so simply but beau-
Kalie's Good-i:at:rg.
tifully expressed, and Looey's shy,
sensitive nature would have shrunk
from a more personal application.
Just one glance of a renewed sym-
pathy passed between them, and a
hearty kiss of reconciliation, and
Looey} left the room, comforted in
the sure conviction of both God's
forgiveness and her mother's.
After breakfast that morning
Katie insisted on Looey's accept-
ance of her white jacket, which was
still quite fresh and pretty. Looey
took it from her very shyly, but
very gratefully. She longed to tell
Katie how much she had felt her
great kindness and unselfishness,
but it was very difficult to say; and
it was only on their way to church,
Unscfishiness Rewarltaed
as their Aunt Mary's carriage rolled
by and she nodded pleasantly to the
children, that Looey at last contrived
to whisper a few words of gratitude
and love into her sister's ear.
Aunt Mary sat in the same pew
with the children, and her keen eyes,
always alive to take in what was
good and generous, as well as what
was faulty, seemed to guess the
whole position of affairs. Shesmiled
very pleasantly to Looey as they
went out into the porch, and gave
the two girls a seat home in her
carriage; and though Looey did
not become till the following winter
the happy possessor of a sealskin
jacket or hat like Katie's, still she
carried about with her from hence-
Katie's Good-nature.
forward what was better still, and
called forth even more admiration
from all beholders, "even the orna-
ment of a meek and quiet spirit,
which is in the sight of God of
great price."
THE END.
DALZIEL BROTHERS, CAMDEN P ESS, LONDON,
DQ2352938722K
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