"Mother, here is a nice little square packet come for you by post!" said Minnie as Mrs. Headley entered the dining-room the next morning. "Yes; Minnie has been turning it, and twisting it, and weighing it, and smelling it--doing everything except open it," said John, laughing. "I do wish to know what it is though!" said Minnie shyly, "and I believe John wants to see just as much as I do." "I will open it presently," answered their mother, smiling, while she seated herself at the head of the table. "Minnie is always rather curious," observed Hugh, looking up from a lesson he had been conning over. "This is something which will rouse your curiosity, and I will see who can tell me the meaning of it," answered Mrs. Headley. "Then you know what it is, mother?" asked Minnie. Her mother assented; and when they had finished breakfast, and their father had gone off to his business, Mrs. Headley took up the little package and began untying the knots. "Cut it," said Alice. "Catch mother cutting a knot if she can undo it," laughed Hugh, gathering his books together. "It's a good thing it is Saturday," said John, "or we couldn't wait, however curious we might be." "There, it is undone!" said Minnie, pressing nearer. As she spoke the paper fell open, and two dozen little square books came tumbling out. The children were going to seize upon them, when Mrs. Headley placed her hand over them, taking up one at the same moment, saying. "What is this, now?" "A little book," said John. "Has it reading in it?" She opened the first page, and to their astonishment there was nothing but a page of black to be seen. "What a strange book!" said Hugh. "It would not be much trouble to learn a page of _that_!" "It is a great trouble to learn that black page, though," said his mother. Hugh peeped closer. "Let me read the outside, mother; perhaps it explains." "Perhaps it does," said his mother, still showing only the black page. "Well, what next? as we can't make that out," said Alice, who was looking on with her arms twined round her sister Agnes. Mrs. Headley opened the next leaf, and they found it deep red. "How strange," said Hugh; "is this difficult to learn, mother?" Mrs. Headley smiled thoughtfully, and answered. "Not so hard as the other; oh, not half so hard--for us!" "And the next?" said Agnes, with a tender light in her gentle eyes. "Pure white!" exclaimed Alice; "and I believe Agnes guesses." "What next, mother?" asked Hugh; "for I suppose you do not mean to tell us the meaning yet?" "Gold!" exclaimed Minnie. "How lovely it looks! Is _this_ difficult to learn, mother?" "Ah no!" said Mrs. Headley, "that is the easiest page of all--nothing but glory." "_Glory?_" asked Hugh, "you have told us the meaning of the last first. Now, what is it, mother?" "What does the black remind you of, dears?" she asked, in answer to their eager look. "Night," "discomfort," "blindness," "being lost," suggested several of them.