“I am not at all sure of success, though,” she added, her face clouding and her eyes seeking the floor.

“Dear child,” Elsie said, “remember that the Lord says to us, ’In Me is thine help.’  Look to Him for help and strength in every time of trial, and you will come off at last more than conqueror.”

“How kind you are, Grandma Elsie!” Lulu said gratefully.  “I think you do believe in me yet—­believe that I do really want to be good; though I have failed so often.”

“My dear little girl, I have not a doubt of it,” was the kind response; and Lulu’s heart grew light:  the trustful words gave her renewed hope and courage for the fight with her besetting sins.

And she, and the others also, made a very fair beginning, winning golden opinions from their teachers.

Both Max and the girls found pleasant companions among their new schoolmates, while the principal of the institution was less disagreeable than they had at first esteemed him, though they all agreed among themselves that it would be quite impossible ever to feel any affection for him, his wife, or Miss Diana, with whom the little girls had most to do.

They all liked Miss Emily best, but Walter was the only one of their number belonging to her department, and she seldom came in contact with any of the others.

They all took lessons in French; and as Signor Foresti had the reputation of being a very fine music-teacher, it had been arranged that the three little girls should be numbered among his pupils.  But the first day, Lulu, on coming home from school, went to Violet with a strong protest against being taught by him.

“Mamma Vi,” she said, “the girls in his class say he has a dreadful, dreadful temper, gets angry and abusive when they make the slightest mistake, and sometimes strikes them with a whalebone pointer he always has in his hand; that is, he snaps it on their fingers, and it hurts terribly.  I shouldn’t mind the pain so much; but it would just make me furious to be disgraced by a blow from anybody, especially a man—­unless it were papa, who would have a right, of course,” she added, with a vivid blush.  “So, Mamma Vi, please save me from having him for my teacher.”

Violet looked much perplexed and disturbed.  “Lulu, dear, it doesn’t rest with me to decide the matter, you know,” she said, in a soothing, sympathetic tone; “if it did, I should at once say you need not.  But I will speak to grandpa and mamma about it.”

“Well, Mamma Vi, if I must try it, won’t you tell him beforehand that he is never to strike me?  If he does, I’ll not be able to restrain myself and I’ll strike him back; I just know I shall.  And then we’ll all be sorry I was forced to take lessons of him.”

“Oh, Lulu, my dear child, I hope you would never do that!” cried Violet in distress.  “How would your father feel? what would he say when he heard of it?”

“I don’t know, Mamma Vi, but I don’t believe he would allow that man to strike me; and I dare say he would think I served him right if I struck him back.  However, I don’t mean to be understood as having formed the deliberate purpose of doing so; only I feel that that’s what I should do without waiting a second to think.”