Janet McLaren | Page 4

them out on the links just now till their clays are ready, and
I can send them to school."
One of those admirable institutions in Scotland for the education of all
classes enabled Janet to carry out her project without difficulty. Mr and
Mrs Morrison had carefully taught their children, and the two boys
were well advanced for their age. The master of the school, on hearing
who they were, at once received the orphans, and promised, as far as he
could, to befriend them. "If you will be obedient boys, and try and say
your lessons well, you will get on," he observed.
Donald looked him full in the face, and at once said he would try, and
he always meant what he said. David made no answer, but clung to
Janet's gown, as if unwilling to be left behind among so many strange
people.
"Ye will be back in the afternoon, and we will be spearing for you,
bairns," she said. "They are precious, sir, very precious," she added,
turning to the master. "If they are shown the right way, as their father
showed it them, they will walk in it; but the deil's a cunning deceiver,
and ever ganging about to get hold of young souls as weel as old ones.
Ye'll doubtless warn them, and keep them out of bad company."
"I'll do my best, my good woman," answered the master, struck at
Janet's earnestness for the interests of her charges; and having bid her
farewell, he led off Donald and David, while Janet, taking Margaret by
the hand, returned to her lodging to resume her daily labour, well

satisfied with the arrangements she had made for the education of the
two boys.
Donald and David returned safe home in the evening from their first
day at school. Donald was full of all he had seen and done, and was
especially delighted at finding that he was superior to many boys of his
own age. Having made several friends, he said he thought school a very
fine place. He might have gone out to play a game of golf on the links,
and he would have done so had he not promised Janet to return at once,
but he hoped that she would let him go another day. David had not
been behind hand with his brother in his class, but he had not been so
happy, and the boys had asked him questions to which he had been
unable to frame replies, without betraying the truth, which Janet had
especially charged them not to do.
"They wanted to ken all about us," exclaimed Donald, "and I told them
that they must just mind their ain business; my home might be a castle
in the Highlands some day, and whatever it might now be, I was
contented with it."
"A very proper answer," exclaimed Janet, smiling for the first time for
many a long day. "Ye maunna be ashamed of your home, or those in it,
laddie; just gang on doing your duty, but dinna mind what young or old,
or rich or poor, think of ye."
"But I said nothing, I would na answer them," said David, sobbing.
"Ye did weel, too, laddie," observed Janet. "The wise man knows
where his strength lies, the weakest may thus come off the conqueror."
She had now to make arrangements for Margaret's education. This was
more difficult than for that of the boys. She could not trust her sweet,
gentle, blue-eyed maid among girls who might be rough or unmannerly,
and yet she could not possibly afford to send her to one of the upper
class of schools. Margaret already read much better than she did, for
her own attainments extended no further than a limited amount of
reading and writing. The few books, besides the Bible, she had brought
away from the minister's library, were mostly on theological subjects,

somewhat, she felt sure, beyond Margaret's comprehension. She lived
on dry crusts for many a day to sanction her extravagance in purchasing
several books, one after the other, suited to the little maiden's taste.
Margaret was delighted to receive them, and while Janet sat and span
she read them aloud to her, and amply rewarded was the kind nurse for
her self-denial. Not dreaming that Margaret could possibly educate
herself, she still continued turning in her mind how that desirable object
should be accomplished.
"Dinna ye think that if we ask God He will show us the way," said
Margaret, one day, looking up into the face of her nurse, who had made
some remark on the subject.
"We will do as ye propose, my sweet bairn," answered Janet. "He is
sure to hear us," and, accordingly, when the chapter from the Bible had
been read, which Janet never omitted