THE KIND HEARTS’ CLUB 83 
zical smile, as she said, “‘What Clara says about her 
thimble reminds me to tell you that Ann has a large 
work-box with plain thimbles of all sizes, scissors, needles, 
and thread. This I used last winter in the city in teaching 
some little girls to sew, who were about your ages. I will 
lend you these things,and then later on, if you do well, 
you will have a chance to earn work-boxes of your own.” 
“Have we boys got to sew, too?” asked Tommy Todd, 
with a very mischievous expression on his freckled face; 
“cause I know how to sew buttons on my overalls, and 
I can do it tighter’n ma can, so’s they don’t yank off for 
ever so long!” 
“No, I had thought of something quite different for you 
boys, though it would not be amiss for you all to know 
how to take a few stitches for yourselves, for you are all 
liable at some time in your lives to travel in far-away 
places, and even when you go down to the shore and camp 
out in summer, buttons will come off and stitches rip. 
“Tt seemed to me that hammers and saws and chisels 
and nails and jack-knives would be more interesting 
to you boys than dolls and patchwork!’”’ As Gray Lady 
pronounced the names of the tools slowly, so that) she 
might watch the effect of her words, she saw five 
pairs of eyes sparkle, and when the magic word “ jack- 
knives ”’ was reached, they were leaning forward so eagerly 
that Dave slipped quite off his chair and for a moment 
knelt on the floor at Gray Lady’s feet. 
“But what could we do with all those carpenters’ tools 
down at school?” asked Dave, when he had regained his 
chair and the laugh at his downfall had subsided. ‘“‘ Dad 
says it’s a wonder Foxes Corners’ schoolhouse don’t fall 
