"Papa, I will think about it. Mamma, do you like I should talk to Nora
about it?"

"By all means!" said Mr. Randolph; "send for her and hold a grand
council. Your mother can have no objection."

Daisy did not feel quite so sure of that; but at any rate she made none,
and a messenger was sent to ask Nora to come that afternoon. All the
morning Daisy was engaged with her mother, going to make a visit to some
friends that lived a long way off. It was not till the afternoon was
growing cool and pleasant that she was released from dinner and dressing
and free to go with her Bible to her favourite reading place;--or rather
one of her favourites; a garden seat under a thick oak. The oak stood
alone on a knoll looking over a beautiful spread of grassy sward that
sloped and rolled away to a distant edge of thicket. Other noble trees
dotted the ground here and there; some fine cattle shewed their red and
white heads, standing or lying about in the shade. Above the distant
thicket, far, far away, rose the heads of great blue mountains. The
grass had just been mown, in part; and a very sweet smell from the hay
floated about under the trees around the house. Daisy's tree however was
at some distance from the house. In the absolute sweet quiet, Daisy and
her Bible took possession of the place. The Bible had grown a wonderful
book to her now. It was the book of the commandments of the Great King
whose servant she felt herself. Now every word would tell her of
something she must do, or not do; all sweet to Daisy; for she felt she
loved the King, and his commandments were good to her. This time she got
very much interested in the twenty-fifth chapter of Matthew, in the
parable of the talents. But she wished she could have had Mr. Dinwiddie
to tell her a little better exactly what it meant. Some of its meaning