"Oh, but you missed it," cried Jean. "You never saw anything so lovely."
"Hush, Jean," said Mrs. Corner. "Jack, dear, I want to know how it happened the little girl had your place."
"We were so surprised when she came in," said Mary Lee. "We thought you were right behind us, and that the little girl had taken the wrong seat for there were two empty just the other side, though they were filled later, but no indeed, there was the number all right. You never saw such an amazed child as she was in all your life. I don't suppose she had ever been in such a place before."
"Tell us about it, Jack," said her mother taking the child's hands in hers.
"I saw her standing on the steps watching the people go in, and she looked so poor and miserable, and I thought of the candle and the flowers and that maybe she never did have any good times, so I asked her if she were going in and she said no, she hadn't any ticket, so I said here, and I gave her mine and ran."
"You impulsive little child," said her mother. "Why, dearie, rather than have had you give, up the play I would gladly have let you take my place. Indeed, as soon as we had inquired of the little girl how she came to have the ticket I did go out to find you, but you were nowhere to be seen."
Jack looked a little regretful. "What did the little girl say?" she asked. "What did you all talk to her about?"
"Your Aunt Helen asked if she had found the ticket, for she thought you must have dropped it. But the little girl said, no, a mädchen, a gnädiges fräulein gave it to her, and then we knew."
Jack turned eagerly to Jean. "Did you ask her name, Jean, and where she lived?"