"My sakes!" she exclaimed presently, "what a funny cretur! See that great lump on his back!" and she pointed with her finger to the picture of a camel. "Miss Susie! what IS that? Is it a lame horse?" "Why no, Tidy, that's a camel; 'tisn't a horse at all. I was reading that very place yesterday,--let me see," and taking the book she read very intelligently a brief account of the wonderful animal. "How queer!" said Tidy, deeply interested. "And is there something in this book about all the pictures?" "Yes," answered Susie, "if you could only read now, you would know about every one. See here, on the next page is an elephant; see his great tusks and his monstrous long trunk," and the child read to her attentive listener of another of the wonders of creation. [illustration omitted] "How I wish I could read,--why can't I?" asked Tidy; and the little colored face was turned up full of animation. "I don't b'lieve but I could learn as well as you." "Why of course you could," answered Amelia, who had risen quite refreshed by her short nap. "I don't see why not. You can't go to school you know, because mother wants you to work; but I could teach you just as well as not." "Oh, could you? will you?--do begin!" cried the eager child. "Oh, Miss Mely, if you only would, I'd do any thing for you." "Look here," said Amelia, seizing the book from her sister's hands, and by virtue of superior age, constituting herself the teacher; "do you see those lines?" and she pointed to the columns of letters on the first page. "Yes," said the ready pupil, all attention. "Well, those are letters,--the alphabet, they call it. Every one of them has got a name, and when you have learned to know them all perfectly, so that you can call them all right wherever you see 'em, why, then you can read any thing." "Any thing?" asked Tidy in amazement. "Yes, any thing,--all kinds of books and papers and the Bible and every thing." "I can learn THEM, I's sure I can," said Tidy. "Le's begin now." "Well, you see that first one,--that's A. You see how it's made,--two lines go right up to a point, and then a straight one across. Now say, what is it?" "A." "Yes; and now the next one,--that's B. There's a straight line down and two curves on the front. What's that?" "B." "Now you must remember those two,--I sha'n't tell you any more this morning, and I shall make you do just as Miss Agnes used to make me. Miss Agnes was our governess at home before we came here to school. She made me take a newspaper,--see, here's a piece,--and prick the letters on it with a pin. Now you take this piece of paper, and prick every A and every B that you can find on it, and to-morrow I'll show you some more."