"I've never been above the earth before," he said. "What a lot you can see! I s'pose in Heaven they can see all the world at once. That's why God can see everybody." "Isn't he ridic'lus!" laughed Georgie. But Anstice did not think him so, and Ruffie was totally indifferent to his sister's opinion of him. Two days later, Anstice reminded them that the month was up. She told the little girls this at the luncheon table. Josie nodded gravely. "Yes, me and Georgie made a tick in our calendar. Ruffie said we weren't to say anything about it, but we meant to. We aren't going to do what Ruffie says." "Well, is it necessary to have another pow-wow?" "Oh yes, that's fun! May we have it to-night?" "Certainly. At six o'clock." "I don't mean to paint up so much," Georgie announced. "It hurts scraping it off!" So that evening the pow-wow was held, and the fire was lighted in the library, and three earnest-faced children sat round it with Anstice. Josie was the first one to speak. "We don't want to fight you," she said; "and you've given us a lot of nice things. Ruffie has got his chair, and Georgie and me our sitting-room, and our lessons aren't half bad now. I think we'll go on as we are." "Yes," nodded Georgie. "You aren't always running after us like the governesses used to do. You let us get away from you sometimes. But we want you to promise us that in the holidays we can do exactly as we like." "What does Ruffie say?" Anstice asked. For answer, Ruffie wriggled closer to her and laid his head on her shoulder. "I love you," he said; "and I don't care if all the world knows it! I don't want you ever to leave us." Anstice felt tears rising to her eyes. "My darlings!" she said. "Yes, I call you all darlings, because you are. I don't mean to leave you. I want you to be as happy as children can be. I shan't be hard on you in the holidays, Georgie. If you get into scrapes, you must learn by experience that scrapes mean trouble to you or to others. Tell me if you can what you want to do, and I'll meet you as far as I can. And I'll try and make the holidays a really jolly time." After the pow-wow was over Josie got Georgie into a corner. "It's no good," she said, "trying to go against her. And the funny thing is that I don't want to. When did you first begin to like her, Georgie?" "It was one day when I called out to her, and she said: 'What is it, darling?' Nobody had ever called me 'darling' before. I felt I could hug her when she said it!" "Yes, I s'pose it's because we feel she really likes us, and loves a bit of fun." As for Anstice, she was inexpressibly thankful that she had managed to win the liking if not love of these troublesome children. Her Sunday readings and talks she felt was an opportunity for sowing seed in the soft ground of childish hearts, and though she never expected to turn them into perfect children, she did seem to see a softening impression upon their characters.