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Show and regarding Ruby with angry eyes and a very red face. "You rude little boy," sayg Ruby, throwing down her paper In surprise! and regarding the young rebel with a haughty stare; "go to your copy at once, or I will put you in the corner! Meg is a naughty, naughty glr1, and if she does not tell me at once what three times four is I will make her a dunce's cap." Meg throws herself upon the carpet in a paroxysm of fright; the disgrace to her mind sounds so terrible that her howl changes into convulsive sobs, only on-ly stopped when Eob shouts at the top nf his voice i Shell "Three times four are twelve, Meg." "Tree times four are twelve," sobs Meg from her crouching position; and then she goes on with her crying more tranquilly. This open rebellion on Eob's part causes Ruby to rise from her chair and advance ominously towardii the culprit. "I don't care I don't!" cries Bob in a frightened voice. "You can put me on three dunces' caps if you like." Ruby makes no answer, but, having reached his side, administers a sharp box on each ear. "I don't care," repeats Eob, whose poor liitle face is crimson at the indignity. indig-nity. "Then you are a wicked little boy," says Ruby angrily; "and as a punishment punish-ment you shall do another whole copy of pot-hooks." 'I don't care," reiterates Bob doggedly, dog-gedly, as Ruby roughly drags- him from his perch. "Now watch me whilst I set your copy, and if you make a blot on this page I shall punish you, remember." "I wouldn't he as cross as you for de whole world," remarks Meg's chirping voice at this moment with great decision. decis-ion. She has risen from the carpet, and is regarding Ruby with a mixture of dislike and fear. Then there was silence in the apartment apart-ment whilst Ruby labors through a whole line of stately pot-hooks she is always very careful about setting the copy well, because the copy is occasionally occasion-ally shown to Mr. Champley. She makes a graceful picture, seated on a low chair, and with her well poised head bent eagerly over her task; unfortunately, Bob and Meg are not of an age to appreciate beauty as a mere study. Yet, notwithstanding this fact, Bob's keen eyes are fixed upon her closely, though with no friendly look. Presently his keen gaze lights upon a hair-pin standing loosely out from Ruby's heavy plaits. Cautiously very cautiously he first touches it, then draws it out and holds it up for Meg's approval. That little damsel smiles and dimples with delight. Much pleased with his success, t quietly withdraws another pin and then another; but suddenly his exultation exul-tation changes into fright, for with a slow movement the big shining plait comes gliding down and falls at his feet. "Oh, I didn't mean it," he says in a tone of apology, "but your hair has come off." Even now he does not understand the enormity of his offense, nor can he comprehend why Ruby becomes so alarmingly red as she stoops to pick up her lost property. "Did you cut it off, Bob?" asks Meg innocently. "No, I only took out the pins, and it fell off," explains Bob, who is full of consternation at the mischief he has wrought. "You had no right to touch it," says Ruby severely. "If your papa only knew how rude you have been he would have you punished." This she CHAPTER III (Continued.) "Has their education been commenced?" com-menced?" asks Ruby, with keen anx- 16 "My sister imagined that she had succeeded in teaching them their alphabet," al-phabet," laughs Robert Champley; "b- . Bob still confounds 'b' and d, wh .st Meg's learning is limited to an acquaintance with the letter 'o.' " "Dreadful!" ejaculates Ruby, looking look-ing shocked. "No time must be lost. I think so much depends upon a child s early training and I know that was dear Clara's idea too." "Was it?" questions Mr. Champley eagerly, and with his keen eyes fixed steadily on Ruby, as though she had suddenly turned into an oracle. "In that case I must see about it at once: but I must manage to get someone who will make their lessons more than half play, for they are neither of them particularly par-ticularly strong, poor children, and I would not have them worried on any account. I dare say if I offer a handsome hand-some salary I shall be able to get them a governess who will listen to my wishes on that point. I had better, bet-ter, I think, advertise for some one about twenty, then she will not be above playing with the children, and she will not have got soured by buffeting buf-feting with the world." "Oh, Mr. Champley, what an utterly utter-ly mistaken idea!" cries Ruby, in real consternation at this most dangerous suggestion. "What you want is a woman of sixty a thorough disciplinarian." discipli-narian." "Oh, no, I don't," responds Mr. Champley. "I am not going to hand over my children to a martinet." He speaks with such unusual decision that Ruby begins most heartily to wish she had not broached the subject of education. edu-cation. "But girls are so inexperienced and often so impatient with children," she falters. "If you are determined to have a young person, would it not be better to engage some one in the neighborhood who could come to them for a few hours a day?" "That is a very good idea, as far as it goes," answers Mr. Champley reflectively. re-flectively. "Only where am I to find her?" Suddenly a bright thought nay, almost al-most an inspiration strikes Ruby. Looking up at him, with clasped hands and beseeching eyes, she says "Oh, Mr. Champley, if I might only be allowed to teach them, I would with pleasure!" "You, Miss Wilden," says her companion com-panion in surprise "you?" "Yes. Why not?" questions Ruby quickly. "I was their mother's best friend, and I dote on children. You do not know how much brightness would be added to my lot if you would only entrust me with their education!" "I had no idea that you had any gift that way." "I think I have. At any rate I know that it would make me very happy if you would send me Bob and Meg for a few hours three mornings a week." Mr. Champley frowns and looks un- There is nothing in the world nate more than officious addling with my affairs, and yet there is nothing that one is more utterly incapable of suppressing sup-pressing without positive rudeness "I say, don't get waxy over it, old boy!" suggests Ted, regarding his brother with some amazement, tor Robert has as a rule such an equable temper that it seems strange to Una it even in the least ruffled. For my own part, I thought it awfully kind of Miss Wilden to propose having tne kids over-she seems very unselfish and kind-hearted." "I don't doubt for a moment that she is a most estimable woman," responds Robert impatiently, "but she has no tact, no common sense; she must have seen plainly that I hated being put. under un-der such an obligation. If she insists upon teaching the children, I don't see how I can prevent her, only I shall certainly send her a check at the end of the quarter for her trouble, and so make a business matter of it." "You can't possibly do that," cries Ted, in a voice of consternation; "I am sure she would take it as an insult! If you want to satisfy your conscience, the children could make her some present pres-ent of jewelry or something of that sort." "I don't care so long as she gets paid somehow," remarks the elder brother carelessly, and yet with a good deal of annoyance in his tone. Ted walks on for some moments in meditative silence'; then he says suddenly sud-denly "I wonder what has come over Shell since I met her last. She used to be one of the jolliest little girls in existence, exist-ence, and now she seems to be full of selfishness and spite. Surely she can't have been crossed in love; yet nothing else that I can think of would account for the utter indifference which she seems for the world in general." "Poor little Shell I noticed a great change in her too!" assents Robert dreamily. "As you say, she used to be such a chatty child, and this evening her behavior was almost rude; perhaps she has had something, as you suggest, sug-gest, to sour her. I thought she looked quite pretty in that simple white dress." "I might have thought her pretty if 3he had condescended to make herself agreeable," laughs Ted; "but, since she did nothing but snub me at every turn, her hair struck me as being remarkably remark-ably red, and her temper uncommonly bad. Wasn't that piece of music an awful infliction?" "Excruciating!" agrees Robert heartily. heart-ily. "Her family ought to give her a hint not to inflict herself on visitors, or, if she insists on playing she should limit her performance to five minutes." "Oh, well, I must own it was rather my-fault!" confesses honest Ted. "She warned me beforehand that I shouldn't want her to play again if I heard her once." "Well, she gave us a quantity, if not quality!" laughs Robert. "Indeed she did!" acquiesces Ted, with almost a groan. says by way of warning the children against repeating this contretemps at home little does she understand their perfect love and confidence in their father. " Her announcement only has the effect ef-fect of sending tender-hearted Meg off into a spasmodic fit of weeping, so distressed dis-tressed is she at the idea of causing grief to her dear papa. (To be Continued.) f " comioriaoie. "I I really could not dream of so far troubling you, Miss Wilden," he says, with a decided head-shake. "Teaching i6 very irksome work, unless to the initiated, in-itiated, and I do not wish my children to become a burden on my friends." "Oh, nonsense!" cries Ruby, with a playful smile. "Don't I tell you that I should enjoy having them?" Raising Rais-ing her voice ' a little she calls her mother to her aid. "Mamma, I am trying to induce Mr. Champley to let me teach Bob and Meg. Don't you think it would really do me good to have some regular occupation?" "Of course it would, my dear," acquiesces ac-quiesces Mrs. Wilden cheerfully "only I am not quite sure' you know much to teach them." "You see, mamma thinks rne incompetent," in-competent," says Ruby, smiling "perhaps "per-haps you object to my plan for the same reason?" "Oh, dear no!" laughs Robert Champley. "I have no doubt whatever of your ability; but " "In that case I shan't listen to your 'buts,' " says Ruby archly, as she rises from her seat and crosses over to the piano, "and I shall consider the matter mat-ter settled. Next Monday I shall expect ex-pect the dear children at ten o'clock precisely." Then, without allowing time for any objection, she takes the seat which Shell has just vacated, and breaks into a brilliant arrangement of lively Scotch airs. Rooert Champley makes one more effort to free himself from an obligation obliga-tion which is so exceedingly distasteful; distaste-ful; but his not very clear reasons are quickly overruled by Ruby and her mother, so that he leaves the Wilderness Wilder-ness that evening with a cloud on his usually placid brow. "I wish that woman had more tact " he confides gloomily to Ted as, having hav-ing donned light overcoats and lighted their cigars, they wend their way down the short drive. "Which woman?" queries Ted in a voice of indifferent wonder. "Why, Miss Wilden, of course' He? common sense might tell her that I would rather have a regular governes, for the children if they nesd teaching t CHAPTER IV. Ruby has now been the self-constituted instructress of Bob and Meg for nearly a month. The novelty of her voluntary task has worn off; the children chil-dren too have taken off that feeling of restraint and shyness which caused them in the beginning to sit like little models of patience during the two hours' devoted to lessons. They have now begun be-gun to realize the fact that their liberty lib-erty is restricted during the morning visits to the Wilderness, and both are beginning to regard their disinterested benefactress simply In the light of a jailer. Ruby possesses none of those qualities so essentially necessary to win childish hearts she has no patience, pa-tience, no tact, and not an atom of Teal sympathy for her young charges. One bright June morning Bob is laboriously la-boriously forming some strange hieroglyphics hiero-glyphics supposed to represent pothooks pot-hooks in a very blotted and limpy copybook, copy-book, whilst poor little Meg, with an ominous quiver of her lips, is standing stand-ing with her hands behind her in front of Ruby, vainly seeking in her passive little brain for the answer to the oft-repeated oft-repeated question "Now, Meg wake up, and tell me, like a good little child, what is three times four." "Tree times four tree times four," repeats Meg drearily so often has the same question been put in the same words that it conveys no meaning to her childish reason. Ruby has a way of scanning the morning news whilst she carries on her monotonous string of questions, so that her face is completely com-pletely hidden from her poor little victim. vic-tim. "Yes three times four. You will stand there until you tell me, you know very well," persists Ruby lu tones of stern reproach. This seems such an exceedingly ZVyeCt t0 roor MpS that her o little fat fists are thrust suddenly dismal hsifl. "I say-you Miss Wllden-you just top bullying our Meg," cries 1 oh, s d rteruy turning round on his high por" Horn which he cannot descend una iod |
