The child's face glowed at the term of endearment; but her pale
lips quivered slightly at the hopeful assurance.

"Oh! no," she said, shaking her head slowly; "I have a double
curvature of the spine, and all the doctors say I never can. I--I-
-think I could bear that--not being able to walk--but the dreadful
pain sometimes makes me wish I wasn't here at all."

Katherine did not make any reply to this pathetic information. For
a moment or two she seemed to be oblivious to everything, even to
the presence of her companions, and stood looking off towards the
western sky, as if communing with some unseen presence there.

Then, suddenly arousing herself, she detached a beautiful pink
rosebud from the lapel of her jacket, saying, brightly: "Do you
love flowers, Dorothy? will you let me fasten this on your coat?
It is fresh from the greenhouse and will last some time yet.
There--see!" as she deftly pinned it in place. "What a pretty
contrast it makes against the dark-blue cloth."

"It is lovely," said the girl, bending forward to inhale its
perfume. "How perfect it is! Do you ever wonder, Miss Minturn, why
God makes the flowers and things that grow so perfect and
beautiful, and people--so many of them--imperfect and ugly?"

"My dear," Mrs. Seabrook here smilingly interposed, though a
quickly repressed sigh arose to her lips, "I hope you are not
going to involve Miss Minturn in a metaphysical discussion during
this first meeting! Dorothy has acquired a habit of philosophizing
and asking profound questions that are not always easily