But I must ask you plainly
what reason you had for speaking of Ida Starr's mother as they say
you did. Why did you say she was a bad woman?"
"It's only what she is," returned Harriet sullenly, and with much
inward venom.
"What do you mean by that? Who has told you anything about her?"
Only after some little questioning the fact was elicited that
Harriet owed her ideas on the subject to a servant girl in the
house, whose name was Sarah.
"What does Sarah say, then?" asked Miss Rutherford.
"She says she isn't respectable, and that she goes about with men,
and she's only a common street-woman," answered the girl, speaking
evidently with a very clear understanding of what these accusations
meant. The schoolmistress looked away with a rather shocked
expression, and thought a little before speaking again.
"Well, that's all I wanted to ask you, Harriet," she said. "I won't
blame you, but I trust you will do as I wish, and never say such
things about any one again, whoever may tell you. It is our duty
never to speak ill of others, you know; least of all when we know
that to do so will be the cause of much pain and trouble. I hope you
will very soon be able to come back again to us.
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