, I never knew any one with such a gift for considering herself her sister's keeper. We belong to the s

re brought fr

the sinews wh

these others,

henever you

now she moved around, facing her visitor until it was Polly's eyes that dropped befo

nothing to do with aiding one another to do what one does not believe to be right. I don't want to preach. Yet don't you think

hing like that. I told you what I have made up my mind to do. If you don't wish to help me, that of course is your a

wly buttoning it, waiting for Esther

etty had almost broken her of. "I don't suppose you can understand, Polly, what an almost dangerous thing you are about to undertake. And without your mother kno

tense yet quiet passion. All the blue seemed to have gone out of her visitor's eyes until they were almost black. H

er you disapprove of me or not makes no difference. I am not objecting to your disapproval. I can perfectly understand that. But what I absolutely will not endure is for you to tell my secret because it happens to strike your conscience that that i

in this mood? Yet there were so many things that she could honestly say. And one of them, that if she had

betray Polly's confidence, even though she might consider it for her good? For Polly had begun her revelation

w ashamed she usually felt after the flare of it was past. Still she did honorably consider that Esther's attitude in the present situation was the wrong one. Perhaps she was being disobedient, wilful, wicked even. Yet she had made up her mind to take the consequ

-bred air. She turned away from it rather quickly to look again at her companion. Goodness, what a contrast there still was between the two girls! They had believed that Esther was improving a little in her app

some way through their friend. This was an ugly thought of Polly's. She was ashamed

ne already for all that I know), which you want more than anything to keep hidden from people. Say you particularly wished Betty never to find it out. Well, suppose I discovere

none too proud of it and having to trust to her imagination as she went along. Now

of regret, almost of fear

feel like you were going to faint? If you are sick why on earth haven'

nly the girl collapsed and dropping her head on her arm began to cry. She was ordinarily self-restrained; and being brought up in an orphan asylum among people who took no interest in her emotions she had learned unusual self

r say 'most anything sometimes in order to get my own way. But of course I don't know any secret of yours and if I di

incess' understanding of Polly O'Neill's character, most certainly she would have laughed. But Esther could not pull herself together so

ay your secret now. Perhaps we don't agree about some things. But you could never be revengeful. I am sure I don't know what I ought to do. Of course you have the right to choose for

xactly what you are doing, boarding in New York and going on with your work. Of course your work

you will go on with this whim of yours, I am not going to let you live in any place by yourself. You would be sure to get ill or something dreadful might happen. No, I shall beg you every minute till the t

riousness of the situation was now entirely past. "Go back to school? Dear me, that is what I must do this

e girl hesitated and stopped for an

tty may be angry with Esther for not telling. Even if I have the right to get into trouble myself, I haven't the right to dr

under his arm. But there was a hungry, eager look in his face that Polly remembered having seen sometimes in Esther's in those early days of her first coming to Mrs. Ashton's ho