side of the kitchen stove, interspersing her rather bewildering orders with
various reflections and surmises.

Sketching the child Jane is a sad task, and pity would lead us to soften every
touch if this could be done in truthfulness. She was but twelve years of age,
yet there was scarcely a trace of childhood left in her colorless face.
Stealthy and catlike in all her movements, she gave the impression that she
could not do the commonest thing except in a sly, cowering manner. Her small
greenish-gray eyes appeared to be growing nearer together with the lease of
time, and their indirect, furtive glances suggested that they had hardly, if
ever, seen looks of frank affection bent upon her. She had early learned, on
the round of visits with her mother, that so far from being welcome she was
scarcely tolerated, and she reminded one of a stray cat that comes to a
dwelling and seeks to maintain existence there in a lurking, deprecatory
manner. Her kindred recognized this feline trait, for they were accustomed to
remark, "She's always snoopin' around."

She could scarcely do otherwise, poor child! There had seemed no place for
her at any of the firesides. She haunted halls and passage-ways, sat in dusky
corners, and kept her meager little form out of sight as much as possible.
She was the last one helped at table when she was permitted to come at all,
and so had early learned to watch, like a cat, and when people's backs were
turned, to snatch something, carry it off, and devour it in secret. Detected
in these little pilferings, to which she was almost driven, she was regarded
as even a greater nuisance than her mother.

The latter was much too preoccupied to give her child attention. Ensconced in
a rocking chair in the best room, and always in full tide of talk if there was
anyone present, she rarely seemed to think where Jane was or what she was
doing. The rounds of visitation gave the child no chance to go to school, so