Hallowe’en to Candlemas 
Tia Ana, “ they do not want poor children like you. It will 
be the boys of Don Benigno they will take. What would 
the lady do with a little dirty one like thee ? ” The next 
day Serafina met Tita again, and Tita said : ££ The Cure is 
going to give the children who do the angels each a cake 
and half a peseta (about sixpence).” 
“ Who are they ? ” asked Serafina. 
But Tita did not know. 
“ Oh ! if we had only a half-peseta, what could we not 
buy?” thought Serafina j and then she had a good thought. 
“ I will go,” she said to herself, “ to the Cure’s sister and 
ask her to take Luisito.” So she went and hung about the 
door of the priest’s house, and Aunt Rosario, the Cure’s 
old housekeeper, saw her and ordered her off. But the 
Cure’s sister, the widow with the town clothes, who had 
come to stay with Father Anselmo, came out and said in 
her sweet soft voice : u Child, what is it ? ” and Serafina 
took courage and said all in one breath : “ Please, take 
my little Luisito to be a little angel S ” At first the widow 
did not understand, but when she did, she smiled, and 
Serafina thought she looked very beautiful, like the picture 
of Our Lady over the altar of the village church. “ Bring 
me Luisito,” she said, ££ and we will see about it.” " He 
is with the goats now, but he will be back in the evening.” 
££ Come, then, my child,” replied the lady, £ ‘ I shall be 
looking out for you.” Serafina went home in high glee, 
but she did not say a word to Aunt Ana, who chanced to 
be very cantankerous that day, ££ because she is so old, I 
suppose,” thought Serafina. When Luisito came in that 
evening his little sister told him all, and hand-in-hand 
they went to the house of the priest. Tia Rosario this 
time did not drive them away, she told them to come to 
the fire, and gave them each a pancake. And the Cure 
and his sister came into the kitchen, and when she saw 
Luisito, that he was a pretty boy, with red-brown cheeks 
like apples, and eyes black as the sloes in the hedge, she 
said, ££ My Anselmo, do you not think he would make a 
fine little angel ? ” 
63 
