Hollowmell / or, A Schoolgirl's Mission

g now one cupboard, then another, now a desk, and again diving down to peer under some out-of-the-way table or form; for plac

ht face clouded over with vexation, "somehow o

lying just wherever you happen to be, they might manage to stay there," suggested Mona Cameron, a tall young l

ands black with dust, and herself nothing abashed by Mona's rather sarcastic speech. "I

red one of the other girls, "I heard

"she must have come in here for

the music-room with her that she might save

eded with the search for her books, though in a rather more subdued manner, and with a great deal less bustle and talkativeness. At length they were all collected from their various hiding-places, and Minnie was ready to depart, but

nctly heard by all the girls in the room, "I will try, Mona, to take your advice about putting my books ba

onished, and perhaps a little perturbed, to find Miss Elgin, the English governess, in the dressing-room where she could not choose but hear what had passed. Her face flushed, and she tried to hurry out without attracting her

ppointment in missing Mabel, but she did not forget to seek her own room the first thing when she got in, and pour out her thanksgiving for her recent triumph-even although she did find herself stopping more than once in the midst

s. It was not, therefore, through one cause and another, till she was in bed that she recollected how she had wished to speak to Mabel so particularly, and what it was she had to speak about. She felt just a little ashamed of herself for allowing what had, on

anced position in the first class, while Mabel was only in the second, and even there was not of much account. Minnie, indeed in most things divided the laurels of the school with Mona Cameron who was the oldest pupil, and the emulation of the two kept the school in a perpetual state of effervescence; Mona being sharp, and at times rather acrid, and Minnie bright and sparkling and excitable, the co

ers, and felt in a vague sort of way that she might be doing a thing almost as admirable, if not as likely to excite admiration, if she could even only for one day keep her sharp tongue under control, and refrain from such exercises of the vein of sarcasm which was her peculiar characteristic, as at other times s

persuaded Mabel to come home with her. This was no very difficult matter, any more than it was an infrequent occurrence, for Minnie and Mabel were never v

off in the way Mabel had done, without an explanation afterwards or an intimation before hand, would have formed a very strong foundation whereon to raise a structure of evidence to prove that something was amiss, which few girl

two worked together, than when they each worked separately, so that they were soon free to settle down befor

f in the way the world calls enjoyment. I told you all about it before, how Mr. Laurence told me about the happiness of being a Christian, and living for something beside my own pleasure, and how since that I have felt that great happiness myself. I can't talk very much about it, because it is so new-and so-I can't find a word for it, but I think you'll know w

suddenly, for Mabel's arm tightened round her arm with a convulsive cl

somewhat spent itself; she did not, therefore, trouble her with any questions or attempts at consolation, but allowed her to cry on unrestrainedly, only changing her position, that she might the better render her all the support in her power, and convey to her by every means but that of spee

in, began with brimming eyes, notwithstanding her protest. "It must have been the narration of your happiness that caused me to lose control of myself, I felt the contrast betw

, of course you never needed to feel such a thing

ut I have never known them. You know one may know all about a thi

y did you always try to interest me in them, when

ever known such a change as you talk about-as what we call conversion must surely imply-so I have never been converted, and that is the

from her own short experience, because she felt, notwithstanding all that she had just heard, that Mabel was years and years before her on the road-further by a long way th

municate difficulties of such a nature in her present impressionable state; she therefore

such things? Come, we won't talk about them, and I daresay I shall grow out of such morbid notions in time; tell m

, and because I would like you to feel as I do, if, as you say, you have never felt it." And Minnie looked at her with great

l, "you don't know how m

re Mona Cameron wouldn't"-she stopped suddenly, half inclined to interrupt herself in order to retail to Mabel the incident of the previous day, but thinking better of it, she resumed-"It does trouble me more than a l

hool-girls particularly when I said the world just now, because I know it will take a long time to convince them of the reality of this-indeed I am inclined to think they won't be convinced, it won't suit their ideas-but there, I am again!

g well what a hard recommendation it was to

even I, who never knew what restraint meant all my life

f half inclined to say something, but re

use, "that I have not yet told you the new idea I have been so lo

e," Mabel answered, "you

o it some other time, its only a project, you know, and of course I wa

may count on," s

ace, if you know the row of houses down bes

t every day co

rty the houses are, and how untidy the women and childre

ught what a pity it was that those houses which might

ve the squalor and misery of the place. He said that some of the worst slums of London could hardly be worse, except in the matter of light and air, and even these the people seemed to be doing their best to exclude, judging from the dust covered and tightly closed windows. It just occurred to me while he was speaking that

ter, and will require a great deal of co

ossible or impracticable?"

and our hearts stout enough for such an undertaking. It is not a thing we may take

ith me in everything else, and I am sure it won't be different in this case, because of course my nature won't change, although my heart has. But that is not all; during these few weeks I have been living just in a sort of trance-that is, every moment I've been alone, content to dream all the time of how good God had been to me, but just the night before papa spoke about those people, it suddenly

of breath, and waited to

t was intended you should take this in hand; but don't let us do anything rashly. Let us think it over carefully

o work, and then, what's the use of considering whether or not it will be too much for us; no amount of consider

t till Saturday to make up our minds as to the best way of going to wo

ood-night, "Not a word more till Saturday, when we shall have time

ran lightly down the steps, and was