At this moment the door opened, and Joe's face appeared, shining with yellow soap, as well as with pleasure. 'How do you do, Joe?' said Milly; 'is Mrs. Dickson at home?'

'Yes, Miss, if you please. Step in marm; mother'll be down in a minute like.'

'We've come to wish you a happy Christmas,' said Mrs. Neville. 'I'm very glad you can spend it with your mother.'

'Thank yer, marm.' Then turning shyly to Milly: 'Please, Miss, we've got Ned a-coming to dinner along of us to-morrow.'

'Have you? Oh! I'm so glad; then you are good friends now, Joe?'

Joe grinned, and scratched his head dubiously; but his mother coming in, and overhearing Milly's question, answered for him. 'Oh yes, Miss, I hopes they be. Ned has been much pleasanter like to him since that half-crown business; and yesterday, after Farmer Palmer had told my boy he might come home to-day and stay over to-morrow, poor Ned seemed so downcast and miserable like, at having no home to go to for Christmas Day, that Joe, he says to him, "Come along o' me, Ned; leastways come to mother's on Christmas Day, and go to church, and have a bit of dinner with us."

'And,' interrupted Joe, gaining courage, 'Ned said, “I will, Joe," and shook my hand quite friendly like.'

'That's right, Joe,' said Mrs. Neville. This is the time to put aside all unfriendly feeling, and to live in peace and goodwill with all around us.'

'Yes indeed, ma'am ; so I telled Joe; and, says I, “Our dinner's a poor one, but Ned he's welcome to it.'

Christmas Dinner for Mrs. Dickson. 133

For all that, I hope you'll have a very good one tomorrow, Mrs. Dickson,' said Agnes; for Miss Milly has ordered you a piece of beef from the butcher's, and there will be a plum-pludding sent you from the house.'

'Oh, ma'am ! Oh, Miss Milly! Oh, Joe! Only think of that!' cried Mrs. Dickson. Joe opened his eyes very wide, and grinned from ear to ear. 'Lor', what a lark! Whatever'll Ned say?' And then Mrs. Dickson began pouring out her thanks, until Milly was fairly driven out of the cottage, wondering how Agnes and Ethel could stop to hear them. But Mrs. Neville, more accustomed than Milly to visit the poor, knew that there is nothing they dislike more than to be cut short in speaking, and not allowed to have their say out. It's many a Christmas since I've tasted real roast beef,' Joe's mother ended by saying; not since I was servant over at Squire Adam's.'

son.

'What were you going to have, then, for dinner tomorrow?' asked Ethel, surprised; for to her young ideas every one fed on beef and plum-pudding at Christmas time. 'A bit of bacon and a tater or two,' replied Mrs. Dick'We think ourselves lucky when we gets that much even. But oh, what a feast we shall have to-morrow!' she added, lifting her hands in delight. Miss Milly, bless her heart! is always at some kindness or other. I've not forgotten her coming down here that night with the halfcrown, no, nor ever shall, either.'

'Or her running on to the doctor's all alone in the dark,' put in Joe, on whom this feat of Milly's had made an impression never to be effaced.

'No, nor that either, bless her little heart! Well! goodbye, ma'am. Thank you kindly for calling. It will be a blessed day when you come here for good, it will.'

'Oh, here you are at last!' exclaimed Milly, as they rejoined her outside. 'I thought you never would come. I can't bear being thanked, and all that kind of thing, so I rushed away.'

'It is unpleasant,' said Mrs. Neville. But it is better to bear it patiently than to risk hurting people's feelings by running away abruptly as you did, Milly. As a rule, the poorer classes think more of a kind manner than of a kind deed.'

'But that is very silly,' said Millicent. 'Very likely; but it is so. Dear me, how late it is getting! We must hurry home, or we shall be benighted, and I shall have you two children laid up with bad colds

to-morrow.'

A

CHAPTER XIV.

NEW YEAR'S EVE.

T length the day of the party arrived. All the mysterious preparations, as Harry called them, were finished, and in a very few hours his curiosity would be satisfied. It was to be an early party, beginning at seven o'clock; after tea, the grand event of the evening was to come off, and then there was to be dancing and games until supper-time.

'What can it be we are going to see, Mary?' said Lily Marsh to another little girl. Georgie says she's sure it's a gigantic Christmas tree; but I don't believe it is, or it wouldn't be made such a secret.'

'I'll tell you what I think,' said the Mary addressed. 'I think it's a big bath filled with sawdust or bran, and that we shall each have a dip in it, and bring up a present in our hands.'

'What! dip right down into the bran with our ball dresses on? Oh! I hope not,' said Lily. It would quite spoil my tulle puffings;' and she pulled out her dress in a consequential manner, in order that Mary might see what a pretty one it was.

Harry, who was near the little girls, saw the action, and

was prompted by a spirit of mischief to say, 'I'll tell you

all about it, if you like.'

'Oh! do,' they both exclaimed.

'Well, it's a shower-bath.'

'What?'

'A shower-bath.

You know what that is, don't you?

Not a water shower-bath, of course, but one which rains sugar plums and all kinds of sweeties.'

6

What nonsense!' said Lily, turning disdainfully away. 'Who ever heard of such a thing!'

'Ah! well you'll see ; and all the boys will jump in, one after the other, and pull the string and get all the gobble, 'cause the girls will be too much afraid of the bumps on their heads. They are such cowards, gals are !'

And boys are so rude!' returned Mary, with flaming cheeks.

'Oh! are they, miss? Very well, then. Now I shan't give you any of the sugar plums I get out of the showerbath. So there.'

'I don't want any, and I don't believe a word of your rubbish. It isn't true, is it?' she asked, seizing hold of Milly, who was running by, apparently in a great hurry. 'What isn't true?'

'Why, that the secret is only a great shower-bath raining sugar plums ?'

Milly burst out laughing. make you believe such stuff? I haven't time to stop now.

'Has Harry been trying to Well, you must wait and see. But can you tell me where

Tommy is, Mary? I want him particularly.'

'He was here a minute ago. But what do you want him for ?'

'Never mind,' said Milly, and away she ran, leaving the