"I shall not give you any lessons you cannot prepare, and when I come I expect to find them done. If they are not, I shall conclude it is idleness that is the cause and will deal with it accordingly."
This sounded very alarming, but the children found that she was right, and that there was no excuse for their lessons not being learnt.
She came from nine o'clock to one, and they had an hour every afternoon in which they did what they called their "prep" for her.
Charity and Hope did everything together, Faith could not keep up with them. She was slow and persevering, but not very clever at books. Yet Miss Vale, if she had any preference, liked to teach her the best of the three, for her whole heart was in what she did, and she was extremely conscientious.
In a few days' time, Faith was allowed to go to see Charlie. His mother met her at the door.
"My boy did too much with you that day. He has been in bed ever since. His father says there must be no voyages down the stream for a long time to come, so don't encourage him to talk about it."
Faith was taken into the sitting-room, where Charlie lay on the couch, looking very white and frail, but he greeted her most cheerfully:
"Come on, Ben. Isn't it hard lines for me?"
"What's been the matter with you?" asked Faith in a sympathetic tone.
"Oh temperature; it's always that. My head nearly bursting and I'm hot as fire! But I'm all right now. What have you been doing?"