There was an old woman who lived in the country, and who had two daughters, the eldest of whom was fourteen years old, and the youngest twelve. Their mother was often obliged to go to market to sell the produce of her small farm, and to leave her baby to the care of Anna, her eldest daughter. Anna was old enough to take care of the child, if she had liked the trouble, but that was not the case. As soon as her mother had gone, she placed the little creature in the cradle, and told Mary to sit by it for a minute or two, and she would return directly; but she seldom came back, till she heard old Dobbin trotting down the lane, and then she ran in, and, if her sister had the baby on her lap, snatched it up in her arms, so that her mother might think she had not left it.
Deception Punished

Little Mary never told tales of her sister, though her mother was sometimes angry that she had not finished her task of knitting; and she could not help it, for the baby often cried, and would not stay in the cradle, and[41] Mary was obliged to hold it on her lap all the time her mother was away.

One morning, the good woman was making ready to go to market, and as she had a great deal to do, she said that she should not return so soon as usual. So she put some food for the baby by the fire, to keep it warm, and told Anna ............