nection with this kind of life," the master proceeded," and that is what we were talking about only the other day that boys and girls brought up here have no idea of working in order to live. You know they see day after day—and, indeed, have seen ever since they first opened their eyes -some hundred or so of people regularly supplied with their rations, and that without having any thing to pay or any thing to do for the food. Do you know, I do verily believe, Friend Franklin, that many even of our big boys here, and I'm sure almost all of our little ones, fancy that Nature sends breakfasts and suppers in the same way as she sends light and darkness; and I'm nearly certain, if some of our indoors boys were hard pushed on the matter as to where bread or gruel came from, you'd find there was some vague idea in their minds that half-gallon loaves were dug up out of the ground, something in the same manner as they've seen the men, in their walks through the town, doing with the paving-stones in the streets; and that gruel is as easily to be collected in tubfuls as the rain-water is caught for our washing."

"What would they fancy a half guinea was, think you, if they were to be shown one?" asked Uncle Ben, as he drew the bit of gold out of the wash-leather bag he carried in his pocket.

"Well, 'pon my word I can't say, Friend Franklin. Farthings are great prizes here," returnea the master, "and groats immense fortunes. But here! come here! you 'Monday.' 'Monday, I say," the master shouted, as he beckoned to one of the foundlings, who had been named after the day of the week on which he had been taken out of a hamper at the mail-coach office.

And when poor "Monday" had made his appearance, and had been shown the bright yellow

little disk of metal, and asked what he thought it was, he said, as he rubbed among the bristles of his scrubbing-brush crop of hair, and stood grinning as if he had been looking at a stale-tart tray for the first time in his life, "It ain't a farden, 'cos I seed a farden once in Dobbs's hand, after his mother had been to see him, and she's got two and six a week, and half a gallon loaf outdoor, you know, sir, 'cos she takes in washing, and has the rheumatiz. No, no," and he shook his hand till you could almost fancy you heard it rattle, it seemed so empty, "it ain't thick enough, nor brown enough neither for a farden. Oh, I know now!" added the half-witted boy, looking up at the master, and grinning knowingly in his face.

"Well, 'Monday,' what is it, eh?" asked the master, as sharp and quickly as a mail-coach guard calls "a'right."

The lad grinned again for a minute or two before answering, and then said, "Why, it's one of the brass buttons off some charity-boy's leather breeches."

peo

Poor "Monday," whose life, ever since he had been taken out of his natal hamper, had been hemmed in by the four high brick walls of the poorhouse, and who, had he heard by chance of the upper, middle, and lower classes of society, would have fancied it pointed out the distinction between overseers, outdoors people, and indoors ple-the poor lad was told "that would do," and "he might go;" and directly his back was turned the master began rolling about in a very convulsion of pent-up laughter, declaring he had never heard any thing half so funny in all his life. But Uncle Ben and even his little nephew saw in the worldly ignorance of poor "Monday" something far too grave to be merry over; so the godfather and the godson looked sorrowfully at each other,

and each knew by the tenderness of the glance the thoughts that were stirring in the other's

heart.

"Oh, I'm wanted, I see, up in the infirmary. Ah! I thought that port wine would be thrown away! so you'll excuse me, Friend Franklin, will you ?" said the master, as he shook the other by the hand. "Drop in whenever you're passing, will you, for I shall always be glad to talk over these matters with you. Good-by, my fine little fellow; good-by, friend;" and, as Uncle Ben said something to him aside, he said, "Oh yes, of course I shall be happy to give you a letter to the governor. Good-by; I wouldn't leave you, but I have to see about the shell and things, you know."

"Come along, Ben," cried the uncle, pulling his waistcoat down as the master hurried from them; but, though the old man began to move, the little fellow seemed in no way disposed to follow. "Come, Ben, I say, there's the jail to see yet," he added, as he turned round and found the boy still in the same spot.

The little fellow jerked his head as the uncle looked back at him. The old man understood the signal, and returned to the boy's side.

"Whisper," said young Ben.

The elder Benjamin stooped down and put his ear close to the lad's lips, and as he caught what the other said, the old man smiled to hear the words.

"Oh, certainly," said Uncle Ben.

The next minute the little fellow was scampering after poor "Monday," and the minute after scampering back again to his uncle, who stood. watching him at the gate.

"Give me your hand, my little man," said the godfather to young Ben; and, as the boy did so,