She did. He was better than his word, for he seemed to have shaken off all his boyishness from that terrible day. He not only attended to his studies, but he became her aid and assistant on all occasions, and his example as well as his influence made the little school far different from what it had been. Before spring, Miss Grey had become so attached to her scholars and the little town that she had no wish to leave them. She, however, learned to see in time the coming of a storm and she provided herself with the means of getting help, so that she was never again made prisoner with a roomful of children by a blizzard. * * * * * "Mamma," said Kristy, after a few moments' silence, "why did you never tell me anything about that Bessie before?" Mamma smiled. "I didn't want to tell you everything at once; I wanted to save some till you were a little older." "I guess there's another reason, too," said Kristy, looking very wise; "I guess they are about some one I know." Mamma smiled again, but said nothing for a moment till Kristy began again. "Tell me another." "Well; let me see," said Mrs. Crawford. "I don't think of anything else interesting that happened to Bessie while she was in the city, and soon after the affair of the dead kitten she went home. But I remember another thing that happened about that time which I will tell you after lunch." "Oh, tell it now!" demanded Kristy, looking at the clock which pointed to ten minutes after twelve. "Well; perhaps there is time," said her mother. CHAPTER V MOLLY'S SECRET ROOM When Molly was a little girl eight or ten years old, she was living in the city with her two sisters who took care of her. They had no father or mother, and the sisters were clerks in a store, for they had to support themselves. They lived in one room, high up in a business block, so as to be near their work, which was indeed in the very next building. They had to go to work early in the morning and leave Molly alone. They had lived in the country, and it was very hard for the child to be shut up in one room all day, with no one to play with, and only back windows to look out of. Once or twice Molly had left the room and wandered into the street, and the sisters were so afraid she would be lost that finally they locked the door and took away the key so that she could not get out. Playing all alone with her dolls became very tiresome after a while, and looking out of the window was not very exciting; there was nothing to be seen but back yards of stores where nothing ever happened. Now Molly noticed that the next building, which was lower than the one they were in, was a little deeper than theirs, and stuck out a foot or so beyond it. One of their windows was quite near this roof which was flat, and Molly often looked longingly at it, wishing she could get out upon it and be out of doors.