"Then I'm certain you and Bessie are benefactors," said Belle, pronouncing the long word slowly, as if she were not quite sure of it. "We try to be," answered Maggie, demurely. "I'm sure you are too, Belle," said Bessie. "Yes: she just is," said Mabel. "But I s'pose you don't think I am one." "Um--well--not quite," said Bessie, not wishing to hurt Mabel's feelings, but too truthful to say what she did not think; "but we have great hopes of you, Mabel. We think it was pretty _benefacting_ of you to let Baby Annie have your new doll in her own hands. It must have been pretty hard work." "Yes," said Maggie: "we didn't expect it of you, Mabel; and we're very agreeably disappointed in you." Praise from her playmates was something quite new and very pleasant to Mabel, and she began to feel pretty well pleased with herself. "Yes," she said, with an air of superior virtue, "I b'lieve I'm growing pretty good now." "You oughtn't to say that," said Bessie: "you ought to say, 'Perhaps I am a little better than I used to be, but I hope I'll be better yet.'" "Why?" asked Mabel, feeling that she was not properly appreciated in her new character. "Because," answered Bessie, "it is not the fashion for people to talk about their own goodness. They ought to wait and let other people do it." "Well," said Mabel, "I'm sure you were doing it; and so why can't I do it too?" "But it's _yourself_, you know," said Maggie; "and because 'every crow thinks her own young one the blackest,' that is not any reason for her to talk about it." "Crows caw, not talk, Maggie," said Bessie, the matter of fact. "Oh, well!" said Maggie, "the lesson out of the proverb is all the same." "I didn't mean to be proud about it," said Mabel, quite humbly; "but I couldn't help feeling a little nice when I thought I wasn't so naughty as I used to be. Mamma says I am better, and papa says so too." "And we say so too," said Bessie, kissing her, the first kiss she had ever given her of her own free will; "and we are very glad of it, Mabel." "I think it was Belle that made me a better girl," said Mabel: "she was so good to me, I had to be. 'Least she was pretty mad with me at first: wasn't you, Belle? And before I did a thing to her too; but afterwards she was real good to me. And you and Maggie were good to me too; and everybody liked you, so I thought it must be nice to be good, and I would be too. And I b'lieve I do like it better." "You see example is better than practice," said Maggie, meaning "precept;" "and so 'cause Belle was good and kind herself, that put you in a mind to be so; and that ought to make you very happy, Belle. I find it is very true that if 'evil communications corrupt good manners,' good communications also corrupt evil manners." Little Belle had not said much while the others were talking on this subject, but now she said quite softly to Bessie,--