and fastened the address upon your jacket?' Rudolf asked her.

'Captain Wilson,' said the child. But she knew no more, not even the name of the steamer, and Mrs Rockingham said they ought not to excite her with questions to-night, so Bessie and the neat maidservant got a little resting-place for her ready, and placed her in it.

'I wish I knew where the child comes from,' Rudolf said to Mrs Rockingham. 'Perhaps you will some day. Bessie is satisfied.'

'If I were sure of that,' he said, 'I should be; but I do not like her to take charge of-anybody's child,' he added after a pause.

'I should think your brother could not have sent anybody's child, for is he not very fond of Bessie ?'

'That is true,' said Rudolf, comforted;

'poor Bob!'

'Poor Bob!' echoed Bessie coming into

the room, he has sent us something he thought worth caring for, Rudolf; come and see the pretty nest we have made for her.'

Rudolf went. Some little time elapsed. They came back and told Mrs Rockingham the little creature had fallen asleep the moment her head touched the pillow.

'She is a dear little thing, Rudolf; think of her face, her eyes, her hair. She is a little bigger now, but I believe she is the original of Madame Jerickan's picture child whom the Danish sailor saved from the shipwreck.'

'She may be, my romantic Bessie.'

'How I lingered before that picture last October, and in one of Helga's old letters she told me about a lady who was going to send a picture to the Paris Exhibition, and now having seen the child in the picture, I feel I have the same in reality.'

'You so generally judge truly, my

wife, that I can say nothing; however, let me go and dismiss Davis; it is getting late, and is time to close for the night,' and the baize door only separated husband and wife, and Bessie's womanly heart sang an evensong of thanksgiving over the coming of this pretty little stranger, who was to be called for the present 'Senza Rockingham.' She knew it would not do to try to alter the familiar name, or the child might rebel, and bring out the name of Beaumont, which she had said was hers, and for many reasons that was one it were better not to parade at present in the house or establishment of Mr Joshua Ribbs.

75

CHAPTER IV.

ROSARIO.

THE very next morning came to Bessie

a letter from Helga, which said—

'My lamb must not think I have been unmindful of her. We had a very sad outbreak of small-pox, and Anna Magnusen sent for me to take her little one far away into the country farm, where we stayed quietly for some weeks, and no letters or newspapers were sent to us. It did not occur to me that you were likely to write, or I should have had arrangements made for your letters to be brought to me. I hope by this time you have heard of your brother-in-law; he had the complaint badly,

I have since heard, but do not know more than that he recovered, which will comfort you, though probably you have seen him.' Then followed news of Danish folk dear to Helga, though unknown to us.

'So Robert had that terrible scourge small-pox ?' said Rudolf; 'no wonder he thought it was "all up" with him!'

'Poor Robert! I wonder who nursed him ?' said Bessie.

'I hope some experienced hand; most likely he would enter a hospital, and so get good care,' Rudolf replied.

'If he did that,' said Mrs Rockingham, 'he would have the best of everything, for the Danish hospitals are beyond all others.' 'Poor Bob!' said Bessie, tenderly; 'I see it is for our sake he did not write. How well he managed to get the dear little child conveyed to us.'

'Yes; how is she? did she sleep well? 'So well, Rudolf, that I told Jane to let her have her sleep well out; I expect