The woman thanked her and blessed her, and disappeared.
“My dearest,” said Lady Blount, gently, “you can't give such people vast sums of money.”
“Why not? She has none. We have a lot. How can we live in comfort when she and her baby are wandering about penniless. They will die. Don't you understand? They will die.”
“We can't provide for them for the rest of their lives, dear.”
“But we must,” she cried. “How can you be so cruel?”
“Cruel? My dearest, if I give her a plate of food, and some milk for the baby, and send her away with a shilling, she will be hugely delighted. A woman like that is not a very deserving object for charity.”
Stella's bosom rose and fell, and she regarded Lady Blount in sudden, awful surmise.
“Auntie darling, what do you mean? Why are n't you horrified?”
“She's only a tramp. Neither she nor the baby is going to die of starvation. And, darling, you must n't let folks like that come near you. Goodness knows what horrible diseases they may be suffering from.”
“But that makes it all the worse. If she is ill, we must help her to get well.”