her cruel treatment of a stranger; but, instead of doing any good,
it only caused Larina to hate her sister all the more.

Some time afterwards the poor fisherman died. He had gone to the big
city down the river to sell his fish, and had been attacked with a
terrible sickness that was raging there.

The girls were now alone in the world.

Mangita carved pretty shells and earned enough to buy food, but,
though she begged Larina to try to help, her sister would only idle
away the time.

The terrible sickness now swept everywhere and poor Mangita, too,
fell ill. She asked Larina to nurse her, but the latter was jealous
of her and would do nothing to ease her pain. Mangita grew worse
and worse, but finally, when it seemed as if she would soon die,
the door opened and the old woman to whom she had been so kind came
into the room. She had a bag of seeds in her hand, and taking one
she gave it to Mangita, who soon showed signs of being better, but
was so weak that she could not give thanks.

The old woman then gave the bag to Larina and told her to give a seed
to her sister every hour until she returned. She then went away and
left the girls alone.

Larina watched her sister, but did not give her a single seed. Instead,
she hid them in her own long hair and paid no attention to Mangita's
moans of pain.