So without more ado, my daughter, Prince Charming and I walked up a golden field of glittering buttercups to the station. We waited on the platform. The train was late--when isn't the train late in the country?--and Bess and I sat down on the long bench that faced the line. Bess seemed lost in a brown study. "A penny for your thoughts, miss," I said. "Mum," replied Bess, dreamily, "I am thinking and thinking----" "Yes, dear?" "What is the use of London?" The subject is rather large, I urged. But Bess had the sharp, incisive intellect of a quick child, and stood firm to her opinion. "I don't see," she said, "that noise, shows, and smart people make use. Why should poor children be taken to London? If the grown-ups want it, they had better go there by themselves." "My dear little person," I said, "even the youngest of others must sometimes do disagreeable things, even in the twentieth century." But this was a hard matter for an only child to understand, and Bess would have none of it. At the same moment, we heard the noise and rattle of the approaching train, and our discussion broke off abruptly. A second later the train had stopped, and the guard alighted and opened a first-class compartment, and proceeded to lift out little Hals. Bess dashed up breathless. The children were too excited to embrace each other. They only rushed to each other, took each other's hands, and went on dangling them, and blushing like two rose buds. Whereupon so, Prince Charming fell with a yelp to the ground. Happily, I was by to pick up and console the poor little puppy. A quiet, nice-looking young woman came out, bearing in her arms a host of packages and rugs. In a minute or two Hals' luggage was collected, and we walked down across the buttercup field to the old Abbey, whilst swallows flew overhead, and sunshine chased purple clouds across the sky. [Sidenote: HALS ARRIVES] "Fräulein is not here?" I heard Bess say to Hals. "No," answered Hals. "Then," whispered Bess, "I shall be able to pray to-night. For all God lives so far, I think He can understand a girl sometimes." "That's handy," agreed Hals, shortly. "Yes," answered Bess; "He knew what I wanted at Christmas all of His own accord, and now He has left out Fräulein, and He couldn't have done better, even if He had been papa." To this, Hals made no answer, but both children danced with glee. Then followed tea, and two hours afterwards, bed. When my little girl was in bed, I went up and found her, and said the last good-night. Her eyes shone like little stars, and she put her arms round my neck. "Mum--Mum," she said, so I went quite close. "I thought," said my little maid, "when I had got Prince Charming, that I never could want anything else, but I do now want something bad--bad." "Yes?" I answered. "Is there nowhere," pursued my little girl, "where one can buy a brother? I want one so bad."