my mother."

At this wicked speech Dotty's heart almost sank into her boots; for she
had never known before that Lina would tell a deliberate lie.

Lina lived in a little grocery store. Her father was gone away to-day,>
and her mother had just served a customer with a pound of damp brown
sugar, saying, as she clipped the string,--

"It's very cheap sweetening at that price; we are going to rise on it
to-morrow."

After that she stood a minute in front of the store, and shook her
head at Jacob, a little boy, some three years old, who was trying to
balance a patent washboard against a tree which grew out of the brick
pavement. It was a large, scrawny tree, which looked as if it was
obliged to live there, but didn't want to, and had tried in vain to
get burnt up in the Portland fire. From the lower branches of the
tree depended a couple of dun-colored hams, and a painted board, with
the words, "Good Family Butter."

"Come in, Jacob, you naughty boy!" said Mrs. Rosenberg, this time shaking
him, because she was afraid he would injure the patent wash-board. Then
Jacob, who had been waiting for the shaking, and would not stir without
it, went in at the side door crying; for the family lived in one end of
the store.

Mrs. Rosenberg had a great many children, and was obliged to work very
hard at various employments. Just now she went to spreading pumpkin-seeds
to dry under the stove. She was not expecting company; and when Mandoline