he'll face Mother Bunch? Yes, laddies, the room is small and close,
and horrid and dirty; and I _hate_ it, but I won't give way, and
I won't cry. I've got soap in this bundle, and washing soda, and an
old brush, and we'll clean it up--you two and me--and make it fit for
mother's boys to live in."

The little fellows, who were really frightened, cheered up at these
words. The dreadful attic, with its slanting roof and its tiny skylight
window, was illuminated by brave, handsome Bet's presence, and by the
comforting knowledge that the wretched man who called himself their
father could give them no blows nor kicks here. A miserable neighbor
in an opposite attic presently heard the three laughing as they worked.




CHAPTER IX.


Soap-and-Water can effect wonders, and by the evening Bet's attic
looked like another place. She and the boys had worked with hearty
good-will; three pairs of vigorous young arms had removed cobwebs, and
scattered dirt, and let in a little fresh air. After all, there were
worse rooms in this house than the upstairs unused attic, and the air
which blew right down from the sky when Bet opened the tiny window was
pure and sweet. The energetic girl had saved all her nightly earnings
since her mother's death, and now she had three or four shillings in
her pocket. Accompanied by the twins, who looked at her with adoring
eyes, she went out presently, and purchased coals and food; and the
three that evening, after the fire was lit and the kettle boiled, felt