The Young Trawler | Page 7

it will bring to them,
though it is so little after all."
"It won't appear little in their eyes, Ruth," said Kate, "for you can't
think how badly off some of them are. I assure you when Jessie and I
think of it, as we often do, it makes us quite miserable."
Poor Misses Seaward! In their sympathy with the distress of others they
had quite forgotten, for the moment, their own extreme poverty. They
had even failed to observe that their own last penny had been
inadvertently but hopelessly mingled with the coin which Ruth had so
triumphantly showered upon the table.
"I've got a paper here with the name of each," continued the excited girl,
"so that we may divide the money in the proportions you think best.
That, however, will be easy, but I confess I have puzzled my brain in
vain to hit on a way to get poor Bella Tilly to accept charity."
"That will be no difficulty," said Jessie, "because we won't offer her
charity. She has been knitting socks for sale lately, so we can buy
these."
"Oh! how stupid I am," cried Ruth, "the idea of buying something from
her never once occurred to me. We'll buy all her socks--yes, and put
our own price on them too; capital!"

"Who is Bella Tilly?" asked Mrs Dotropy.
"A young governess," replied Jessie, "whose health has given way. She
is an orphan--has not, I believe, a relative in the whole world--and has
been obliged to give up her last situation, not only because of her health,
but because she was badly treated."
"But how about poor Mr Garnet the musician?" resumed Ruth, "has he
anything to sell?"
"I think not," answered Kate; "the sweet sounds in which he deals can
now be no longer made since the paralytic stroke rendered his left arm
powerless. His flute was the last thing he had to sell, and he did not part
with it until hunger compelled him; and even then only after the doctors
had told him that recovery was impossible. But I daresay we shall find
some means of overcoming his scruples. He has relatives, but they are
all either poor or heartless, and between the two he is starving."
Thus, one by one, the cases of those poor ones were considered until all
Ruth's money was apportioned, and Mrs Dotropy had become so much
interested, that she added a sovereign to the fund, for the express
benefit of Bella Tilly. Thereafter, Ruth and her mother departed,
leaving the list and the pile of money on the table, for the sisters had
undertaken to distribute the fund. Before leaving, however, Ruth placed
a letter in Kate's hand, saying that it had reference to an institution
which would interest them.
"Now isn't that nice?" said Kate, sitting down with a beaming smile,
when their visitors had gone, "so like Ruth. Ah! if she only knew how
much we need a little of that money. Well, well, we--"
"The tea is quite cold," interrupted Jessie, "and the fire has gone out!"
"Jessie!" exclaimed Kate with a sudden look of solemnity--"the penny!"
Jessie looked blankly at the table, and said--"Gone!"
"No, it is there," said Kate.

"Yes, but Ruth, you know, didn't count the money till she came here,
and so did not detect the extra penny, and we forgot it. Every farthing
there has been apportioned on that list and must be accounted for. I
couldn't bear to take a penny out of the sum, and have to tell Ruth that
we kept it off because it was ours. It would seem so mean, for she
cannot know how much we need it. Besides, from which of the poor
people's little stores could we deduct it?"
This last argument had more weight with Kate than the others, so, with
a little sigh, she proceeded to open Ruth's letter, while Jessie poured out
a cup of cold tea, gazing pathetically the while at the pile of money
which still lay glittering on the table.
Ruth's letter contained two 5 pounds Bank of England notes, and ran as
follows:--
"DEAREST JESSIE AND KATE,--I sent your screen to the institution
for the sale of needlework, where it was greatly admired. One
gentleman said it was quite a work of genius! a lady, who seemed to
estimate genius more highly than the gentleman, bought it for 10
pounds, which I now enclose. In my opinion it was worth far more.
However, it is gratifying that your first attempt in this way has been
successful.
"YOUR LOVING RUTH."
"Loving indeed!" exclaimed Kate in a tremulous voice.
Jessie appeared to have choked on the cold tea, for, after some
ineffectual attempts at speech, she retired to the window and coughed.
The first act of the