even these were not unmixed with bitterness;
for into the midst of her joy would steal a shy
anxious thought which was the more terrible
because it came so stealthily, so soft-footed and
unbidden. Had not this child been given her
as a punishment for her guilt? Had she then a
right to turn God's scourge into a blessing?
Did she give to God "that which belongeth unto
God," as long as all her hopes, her thoughts,
and her whole being revolved about this one
earthly thing, her son, the child of her sorrow?
She was not a nature to shrink from grave questions;
no, she met them boldly, when once they
were there, wrestled fiercely with them, was
defeated, and again with a martyr's zeal rose to
renew the combat. God had Himself sent her
this perplexing doubt and it was her duty to
bear His burden. Thus ran Brita's reasoning.
In the mean while the years slipped by, and great
changes were wrought in the world about her.

The few hundred dollars which Brita had been
able to save, during the first three years of her
stay in Chicago, she had invested in a piece of
land. In the mean while the city had grown,
and in the year 1859 she was offered five thousand
dollars for her lot; this offer she accepted
and again bought a small piece of property at
a short distance from the city. The boy had
since his eighth year attended the public school,