injured member for her mother's inspection.

"Mother," said Charlie, in his justification, "she began to beat me before
all the boys, before I had said a word to her, and I wasn't going to stand
that. She is always storming at me. She don't give me any peace of my
life."

"Oh yes, mother," here interposed Esther; "Cad is too cross to him. I must
say, that he would not be as bad as he is, if she would only let him
alone."

"Esther, please hush now; you have nothing to do with their quarrels. I'll
settle all their differences. You always take his part whether he be right
or wrong. I shall send him to bed without his tea, and to-morrow I will
take his marbles from him; and if I see his knees showing through his pants
again, I'll put a red patch on them--that's what I'll do. Now, sir, go to
bed, and don't let me hear of you until morning."

Mr. and Mrs. Ellis were at the head of a highly respectable and industrious
coloured family. They had three children. Esther, the eldest, was a girl of
considerable beauty, and amiable temper. Caroline, the second child, was
plain in person, and of rather shrewish disposition; she was a most
indefatigable housewife, and was never so happy as when in possession of a
dust or scrubbing brush; she would have regarded a place where she could
have lived in a perpetual state of house cleaning, as an earthly paradise.
Between her and Master Charlie continued warfare existed, interrupted only
by brief truces brought about by her necessity for his services as
water-carrier. When a service of this character had been duly rewarded by a
slice of bread and preserves, or some other dainty, hostilities would
most probably be recommenced by Charlie's making an inroad upon the newly