A Peep Behind the Scenes

a cloud was to be seen in the sky, and Augustus was in capital spirits, for he

ion of the Performing Little Pigs,''Roderick Polglaze's Living Curiosities,' and 'The Show of the Giant Horse.' Augustus knew the proprietor of nearly e

tered the main street, they saw a cloud of dust in front of them, and then an immense

ittering gilded car, which was coming towards them, s

, Toby?' as

hey were going to be here, and he was afraid th

up on one side of the street t

s was followed by about a dozen men on horseback, some dressed in shining armour,

ed as an ancient Briton, and supposed to personate St. George. Then came a number of mounted ladies, dressed in brilliant velvet habits, one green, o

pace. Then two little girls and a little boy passed on three diminutive ponies, and next a tiny carriag

standing on donkeys, and dressed in hideous costumes. Then, th

s, a helmet on her head, and a trident in her hand. She was leaning against two large shields, which alone prevented her from falling from her giddy height. Some way below her, in front of the car, sat her two maidens,

o be heard or seen but a noisy rabble, who were haste

ptured with all they saw. When Britannia came in sight, they could hardly contain themselves, so envious were they of her. One of them told the

ng out and speaking in a low voice

girl; 'I only wish

not wonder if that poor girl is about as wretched as I am. But people don't consider;

a market-place. Although it was only Saturday morning, and the fair was not to begin until Monday, many of the shows had already arrived. The marionettes and the wild-beast show ha

or open carriages, and then being taken round by means of steam at a tremendous pace, till their breath was nearly gone; and when they alighted once more on the ground, they hardly knew where they were, or whe

s nothing to be heard on all sides but rapping and hammering, every one working with all his might to get everything finished before sunset. E

often before that it was no amusement to her, and she felt very gla

in a towering passion with one of the men, who had annoyed him by neglecting to put up part of the scaffolding properly. The two men shouted at e

came and ordered them off, and they wer

as very well she was so much better, for he and Conrad had had a disagreement, and Conrad ha

and Rosalie's mother looked at

her had left them for

stand all that long, long time; I'm su

e telling your father, he thinks

at if it makes you bad a

about it; I may as well do it without making a fuss about it; your fathe

would ever get through her part, she was too weak for it. But he told her shortly to mind her own business; so little Rosalie could do nothing more-nothing, except watch her mother very

their Sunday clothes passed along the market-place to church

roaming about the town; but Rosalie's mother was too weak

hat Sunday afternoon, 'I'm g

me, mammie dear

e box from under the bed. It's rat

mmie dear,

long time since she had turned out the things at the bottom of the box. She took out from it a small bundle pinned up in a towel, then, c

a little pair of blue sh

yes; 'I put them away the day he was buried, and I've never liked to part with

,' said Rosalie,

ut. Then, after seeing that no one was near, she touched a spring, and took out of the velvet-lined case a beautiful

lie the picture of a girl with a very sweet

aid her mother, 'tha

in her hand, and looke

y a day; I can hardly bear to look at it now, for I shall never see her again-never, darling! What's t

ling through the fair, ma

uld not bear to part with it; she gave it to me my last birthday that I was at home. I remember it so well, Rosalie dear; I had been very disagreeable to Luc

d kindly to me; and I sometimes even wished she would be

te with it, asking me to accept this little gift from my sister Lucy, and always to keep i

s not seen it for many years, and he has forgotten all about it. When we were so poor, I used to be so afraid he would remember this locket and sell it, as he did all my other je

mammie dear,'

never let it be sold or pawned, Rosalie, I couldn't bear to think it ever would be. And

more parce

mother. 'I can't give you the locket yet, because I must

, and put into Rosalie

ened the book, and read

r friend Mrs. Bernard,

rayer that she may mee

the poor woman. 'I read a few verses the first week she gave it to

it to you,

it of it to me every day; I don't know whether it will do

in at once,

te your name in it, that you may alway

d she wrote at the bottom of the page-'M

ld, you may b

l it be, m

e, dear; I should think it will

osalie found Luke x

, until he find it? And when he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbours, saying unto them, Rejoice with me;

e, Rosalie, child

pentance, m

, Rosalie darling, and hating yourself for

tance, you must be like the one

shall ever get back again; it's much easier to get wrong than to get right; it's a very, very hard thing to find the

r, isn't it just

mean, Rosal

d their way. And this sheep didn't walk back; did it? He carried it on His should

g thoughtfully out of the window; much, very much was passing in her mind. Then Rosalie closed the Testament, an

alie wished very much that she could creep into one of the churches and hear another sermon. But just then her father and the men

de her go through her part of the play. She was just finishing