This awful thought sobered them at once, and, finding it getting dark, shoes were hastily sought out of the pile in the corner, sun-bonnets donned, and slowly the long procession moved down the back stairs and out again into the street.

Nimpo flung herself on to the little bed in her room, and sighed with happiness.

“Oh! wasn’t it splendid?—­and I know mamma’ll forgive my stockings.  Besides, I’ll wash them myself, and darn them.”

(While I am about it, I may as well say that every girl who went to Nimpo’s party had a long and serious task of darning the next week.)

When it was all over, and Mrs. Primkins and Augusta, assisted by two or three neighbors, had washed and returned dishes, brought down tables and chairs, swept out front hall, and reduced it to its normal condition of dismal state, to be seen and not used, and the neighbors had gone, and it was nine o’clock at night, Augusta sat down to reckon up debts, while Mrs. Primkins “set the bread.”

Augusta brought out her account, and read:  “Mrs. A., blank loaves of bread, ditto cake, one dish preserves; Mrs. B., ditto, ditto; Mrs. C., ditto, ditto.”

Mrs. Primkins listened to the whole list, and made a mental calculation of how much of the ten-dollar bill it would take to pay up.  The result must have been satisfactory, for her grim face relaxed almost into a smile, as she covered up the “sponge” and washed her hands.

“Wal, don’t let your Pa get away in the morning till he has split up a good pile of oven-wood.  We’ll heat the brick oven, and have over Mis’ Kent’s Mary Ann to help.  I guess the money’ll cover it, and I can pay Mary Ann in old clothes.”

THE LINNET’S FEE.

BY MRS. ANNIE A. PRESTON.

Once I saw a wee brown linnet
Dancing on a tree,
Dancing on a tree. 
How her feet flew every minute
As she danced at me-e-e;
How her feet flew every minute
As she danced at me!

“Sing a song for me, wee linnet,
Sing a song for me,
Sing a song for me.” 
“Oh, Miss, if you’ll wait a minute,
Till my mate I see-e-e;
Oh, Miss, if you’ll wait a minute,
He will sing for thee.”

“Thank you, thank you, wee brown linnet,
For amusing me,
For amusing me;
You have danced for many a minute,
You must tired be-e-e,
You have sung for many minutes,
You must tired be.”

“Thanks would starve us,” cried the linnets,—­
As he sung at me,
As she danced at me. 
“Should you sing like this ten minutes,
You would want a fee-e-e;
Should you dance like this ten minutes
You would want a fee.”

“Pardon me, I pray, dear linnet,
Fly down from your tree,
Fly down from your tree. 
I will come back in a minute
With some seed for thee-e-e;
I will come back in a minute
With some seed for thee.”

DAB KINZER:  A STORY OF A GROWING BOY.