When the show grounds were reached,Kitty thought the hurry and the noise quite as interesting as the cattle. And when, after putting his chickens in their place, Sam led her up into the great hall where the fruits and flowers and cakes and jellies were, she began to imagine that the fairy tales were coming true. For poor little Kitty had lived her whole life in the orphans’home, and real pleasures had been few.

While she stood staring at all the beautiful things, a lady who was arranging fruit near by upset a basket of fine peaches, and they rolled away under tables and chairs.

“I’ll pick them up for you, ma’am,” cried Kitty, who loved to be useful. Down she went on her knees, and carefully picked up every peach.

“What is your name, my little girl?” asked the lady, as she brushed off the yellow fruit.

“My name is Kitty, and I live at the orphans’home. I never saw a Cattle Show before,because I never had anything to bring,” said the child.

“What did you bring this time?” asked the lady.

“I brought a lovely kitten, and she is downstairs with the hens. She is all white, and she has a blue ribbon around her neck,” said Kitty.

“Oh, Mother, I want to see her,” said a shy little girl, popping up her head from behind a table, where she had hidden herself away. So Kitty took the little girl to see Miss Puss in her cage.

While they were gone, Sam came to find Kitty, and the kind lady, who was amused at the cat story, asked him about the child.

“She hasn’t any friends except me and the kitten,” said Sam, “and so I thought I would give the poor little girl a bit of pleasure. The money that Mr. Green gave me for bringing his hens will buy Kitty some dinner, and a book maybe,or something to remember the Cattle Show by. I shouldn’t wonder if I earned a little more doing chores today. If I do, I shall give it to her for a prize, because I brought the kitten just for fun,and I shouldn’t like to disappoint the child.”

As Sam laughed, and rubbed his rough hands together over the joke of surprising Kitty, the lady looked at his kind old face, and decided to give him a pleasure, too.

When her little girl came back and begged her to buy the lovely kitten, she said that she would. She put five dollars into Sam’s hand,telling him it was Kitty’s prize, to be used in buying books and toys for the motherless child.

Kitty was quite willing to sell puss, as five dollars seemed a splendid fortune to her. Such a happy day as that was! She saw everything, had a good dinner, bought “Babes in the Wood” at a book stand, and best of all, she made many friends.

Miss Puss in her cage was brought up by her new mistress and put on a table among the flowers, where she was much admired.

When Kitty returned to the orphans’ home everybody in it was surprised and delighted at her good luck. She had to tell over and over again about her happy day at the Cattle Show.

— Louisa M. Alcott UKmgLtZilceytODgftj7ZWd/c5CCVF15XEoIs2PG7rnQGygWkkeWbdqsuWU1EdZa