The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1895-06-29

self.
"Come," called Mabel, impatiently.
Josie started.
"Wait minute" whispered Allie.
"Look here, Josie, l want to tell you
something"
"Whati"
Allie blushed before her little SIS
ter.
"See here, Josie, if you'll give me
enough of your berries to fill up my
pail, I'll give you Miss Prim."
Miss Prim was doll which Josie
had especially admired.
The poor little thing hesitated, and
looked wistfully at her berries; she
had so counted on showing them and
being praised. Then she thought of
Miss Prim, who was dressed in black
silk and wore white lace handker-
chief around her neck, and consented.
Allies pail was filledto the brim, and
she trudged soberly home with hers,
half full. She had promised faith
fully not to tell.
"Allie's got her pail full, after all,
mamma" Mabel said, when they got
home, "and l do feel SO mortified be-
cause l laughed at her. They are
lovely ones, too. / do believe they
are better than NINE"
Everybody exclaimed over Allies
berries. She did not take much
pleasure in their praise, however. She
felt guilty, and she did not dare to
look at Josie. The poor little girl
stood by with her half pailful, look
ing rather pitiful. Even Miss Prim
could scarcely console her. They
thought she had done wonderfully
for the first time. But she kept
thinking, "What would they say if
they knew how many Ireally picked7'
She felt hurt at Allies depriving her
of her first little hard earned glory,
and wondered innocently how she
could. But she faithfully kept her
promise not to tell.
They had berries and milk for tea,
but Allie did not eat any. She was
growing uneasy. She had passed
over Miss Prim slyly to Josie, but
that had not made matters any better
with herself. The meanness and de-
ceit of which she had been guilty,
kept standing out blacker and black
er. IT was long time before she
could get to sleep that night. At
last she made a resolution which
pacified her little, and she fell
asleep on it. She would not eat an
other berry that season. She was ex-
tremely fond of berries, too.
She kept her resolution, to the
great wonderment of everybody.
They could not imagine what had
turned Allie. She even refused Der
ry-pie like a sincere, but mistaken
little martyr. She did more than this
to satisfy her conscience. They went
berrying again and she assisted Josie
to fill larger pail, and went home
with hers half empty. But that made
matters no better. Honest little Josie
told at once that Allie had helped
her; she never even dreamed of TAX
ing credit which did not belong to
her.
Allie looked so black to herself be-
side Josie. Her self-imposed pen
ances did not seem to whiten her at
all. Still she went on with them.
One day there was a beautiful
berry pudding for dinner, and she
would not take any. Her mother
laid down the spoon and stared at
her.
"What is the reason you act so
about eating berries, Allie?" said she.
II don't care for them," Allie fall
tered.
why noti Have they made you
sick?"
mo, a'am." She was almost cry
ing.
Her mother said nothing more.
After dinner, when her mother had
gone into the sitting-room, Allie fol-
lowed her. She stood looking med
itatively out of the window for a
minute, then she began:
Mamma" said she.
"Well."
81 want yout to tell me something. If
anybody does anything wrong, is
there anything that can make up for
not telling of it,"
"No, Allie, l don't think So"
Suppose anybody kept on being
real good for a thousand years,
wouldn' they feel any easier theni"
al guess not, dear"
"Then l shan't try it any longer;
l didn't pick all the berries. I filed
the pail up with Josie's, and made