Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER III. It’s more asking than answering in this world, asking back and asking on. ? Adeline D. T. Whitney. AT about ten o'clock on the morning of the appointed day, Mrs. Pearson entered the cottage at Kew with the baby Johnstone’s clean clothes. Mrs. Aird looked tired and flushed.
Such a night as I have had, mother, you would n’t believe ! she exclaimed; as fast as one was quiet the other set off crying, and it’s been nothing but cry, cry, one or the other, all the time I ‘ve been washing and dressing them. They’re both just fed, and I hope they'1l take a spell of sleep now, for I ’m about tired out. The clothes from the wash were then spread on the table, and Maria proceeded to pay her mother for doing them. And now, mother sit down, she proceeded. You are the washerwoman, you see, sit down, but in case anybody should come in, leave the money and the clothes on the table to look natural.

Nobody will come to-day, answered the mother, rather seriously. Why not?
That?that little girl that was first taken ill ? she ’s dead, Maria.

Mother!

Yes, I inquired, and? and the cook told me; she gave a little gasp here, as if making a supreme effort to overtake and run down her words, then went on quite easily. She said,
They ’ve just sent the death to the Times, and ? and you ’ll see it to-morrow, ’ Irene, beloved child of Donald Johnstone, aged three years and three months.‘

Yes, she was their eldest child. Poor Mrs. John- stone ! I wonder how the others are, mother?

Very ill by what I hear; the cook said Mrs. John- stone was very ill too, and the master was so knocked down by that, and his trouble at the child’s death, that it was a pity to see him. “ He is very fond of her; I wonder whether she is going to have…