cellar through a hole; broken crockery and rubbish lay about in heaps. Chrissy felt everywhere, and at last touched something soft. It was the bundle. But in feeling about in the rubbish, she had found something else by it, an old cardboard box tied up. It could only be intended, like the bundle, for her. At first she thought of taking the things just as they were, without looking them over, and returning straight home; but the curiosity to see what treasures had been given her was too great to resist. It was too dark in the cellar to see much, but there was the ray of light from the slit, so she carried her possessions there.

First, she opened the bundle with the clothes. She found a warm jacket and some linen for her mother in it, and a frock for herself. She could not resist trying it on; it fitted, as if made for her. She was delighted. But what could be in the cardboard box? It looked old-fashioned and dirty enough, and was tied round with a faded greasy ribbon. Chrissy first folded the clothes up again carefully, and then took up the mysterious box to open it; weighing it in her hand. Just then she thought she heard something move in the wood-cellar, not far from where she was sitting. She listened. She could hear nothing; but, as she looked round, she felt frightened. But her curiosity soon made her forget her fears. She tried to untie the ribbon round the box, but in her haste she only drew the knot tighter. She thought she heard some one as if trying to keep in a cough. She stopped for a moment, but then determining nothing should hinder her again, she tried with all her strength to tear off the ribbon. She succeeded; but at the same time the box fell out of her hands. The lid came off, and the contents fell with a rattle on the ground. There, at her feet, lay a large silver watch, with an old-fashioned steel chain, an equally old-fashioned chain of glass beads with a silver cross on it, and at least two dozen silver spoons. Directly Chrissy saw the things she felt that they could not be intended for her. She felt terrified; and, as if she must leave everything, even the bundle with the clothes, and rush up the steps into the light of day,

and get home as fast as she could. But it was not safe to leave such valuable things lying there. Who could tell but that they would be stolen? So she knelt down to collect the things together; but what she ought to do with them she did not know. She would not keep them, at all events, of that she was quite clear.

She was taking the watch up from the ground when she heard a shrieking voice behind her, Thief! rogue! thief!'

In her fright, Chrissy threw the watch on to a heap of rubbish, seized her bundle, and turned to escape up the steps. But hardly had she set foot in the passage, than she was seized by the arm, whilst some people came running down the steps, and she was pushed and pulled back to the place where the silver spoons lay scattered about. So I have caught you at last, you thief,' screamed a hideous old woman.

This was the porter's wife, who had been the first to seize Chrissy. Her husband, who had come down, took up a stick, and would have knocked the child down with it in his fury, had not his hand been caught by a woodcutter who was chopping wood in the courtyard, and who, on hearing the woman's cries, had hurried down into the cellar.

'Quick, husband, fetch a policeman,' cried the woman, who all this time held the poor child tightly.. 'Bring him here, that he may see the things on the spot. Go directly! Do you hear me? Who knows how much the little wretch may have got hidden here!'

The man went off; and the wife stormed at poor Chrissy with a torrent of abuse. Whenever the child opened her mouth to try and explain, she was ordered to be silent,- -an order enforced with blows.

I will teach you,' cried the woman, to steal my watch and spoons again, you thief; and where did you find that bundle? Jacob, just see what is in it.'

The woodcutter did as the woman ordered him. The child wished to tell how she had come by the clothes; but the old woman would not listen.

'There, see. I ought to know those clothes. So you have actually robbed the family upstairs, who have just left. See

how sly the young thief is. First, she knocks, then she ings, then she listens at the door! Oh, I saw it all; and when she finds no one is there, she runs into the cellar to fetch her stolen goods out of her thieves' hiding-place. Only wait till you are shut up in prison, and have time to think over your handiwork, on bread and water.'

So the old woman rated on, till poor Chrissy seemed to lose all power of seeing or hearing. On her knees she begged them to let her go, for she was innocent. No words, no prayers, were of any use.

The porter soon returned with a police

man.

'There, we have caught her at last,' he said, pointing to the child. That is the thief who stole our things the day before yesterday: and on Sunday, too,-just as I had gone out with my wife.'

All the attempts of the child to clear herself were in vain, and nowhere could the note from the lady from Hamburg be found. Under the suspicious circumstances, it was the duty of the policeman to take Chrissy into custody. And so he did. As they crossed the courtyard they passed a puppy-dog who was pulling and tearing at a piece of paper in his play. No one saw it but Chrissy.

That is my letter, which I must have dropped on the stairs,' thought she; but shame, and terror, and pain seemed to rob her of speech. She could not utter a word. Without any attempt at resistance, she walked on by the side of the policeman. She hid her face in her apron, and hardly dared to think of anything.

(To be continued.)

THE CLEVER RABBIT.

IAM going to tell you a little story about a pet rabbit which I once had. I am very fond of pets. I have a little dog called Flossy, and two kittens, a parrot that says Pretty Polly,' and a sweet little canary; but now I am going to tell you about a pet rabbit I once had. I had two rabbits, one snow-white with long soft ears and pink eyes. This one's name was Looloo. It would come when

It

ever I called it, and eat out of my hand. The name of the other was Topsy. was jet black all over, and had a beautiful glossy coat; but Topsy was not quite so friendly as Looloo. It would not always come when I called it, so Looloo was the greater pet of the two. These two rabbits lived in hutches in the garden close to one another, so that there was only a piece of wood that divided them from each other. I had had the hutches made out of an old box. I always fed them myself. One day I went to feed Looloo as usual, and opening the door of his hutch I found that a tiny hole had been made in the piece of wood that separated the two hutches. Now this I thought very strange, and at first I thought perhaps a mouse had got in and had been gnawing its way through; so I watched, and the next day the hole was bigger; but then I found out there was no place for a mouse to get in, so I was sure it must either be Looloo or Topsy that had done it. I made up my mind I would find out which was the culprit; so when I took them their food next day, before I opened the door of the hutch I listened, and I thought I heard a noise like scratching; then I listened again, and was sure I heard Looloo gnawing at the wood: so, after waiting a minute or two, I opened the door, but there was Looloo, not gnawing, as I expected to see him (and intended to scold him for), but laid down, and, as I thought, fast asleep in the straw. I was very much surprised, and shut the door again, and was going away wondering what the noise could be that I had heard, when I heard it just the same again. Almost directly I opened the door again, but there was Master Looloo fast asleep on the straw; but this time I was not to be deceived, for I saw that he had one eye open, and by closing the door once more and opening it again suddenly, I found my little gentleman was playing me a trick. It was, in fact, he that was making the hole with his sharp teeth: but before I could catch him doing it he had lain down and pretended to be asleep, proving himself to be a very clever and sly little rabbit. AUNT EMILY.