OUR MOTHER'S ROOM. 43 



Just a year before, her first-bom, the pride and 

 darling of the home, had died in a far land ; and to 

 the new baby (our Benjamin) was given the lost 

 one's name. 



It was the father, not the mother, who gave the 

 names of dead children to new comers. She always 

 said that those who were gone were still part of her 

 family -band, and she could not appropriate their names 

 in that way. So those of us who had been so named 

 seldom heard ourselves called by our baptismal designa- 

 tion, and our father was chief of those who gave us 

 pet names instead. 



"Benjamin" and myself have our names to thank 

 for our coming in for a double portion of the home- 

 spoiling. 



After that period my memory becomes more clear, 

 and our mother's room remains the distinct centre of 

 the home-life. 



Though our mother was an invalid more or less, and 

 spent the greater part of her time in that apartment, it 

 was upon the whole a joyous place. Her sunny nature, 

 conquering pain and sorrow, diffused itself around, and 

 attracted to itself the brighter portions of life without. 



There was no hushing of childish voices, no stilling 

 of young footfalls when the bairns raced upstairs " to 

 tell mamma ; " though doubtless their noisy approaches 

 and startling announcements must have frequently tried 

 her delicate nerves very much. It is to be hoped they 

 did not think of that in their impatience to have her 

 participate in everything which interested them. 



