lYffliEDlAMO

 
 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS.
 
 Uniform in size and price ivit'i this volume. 
 
 "BONNIE LESLEY:" 
 
 A NOVEL, 
 BY MRS. HERBERT MARTIN. 
 
 AUTHOR OF "CAST ADRIFT," ETC. 
 With Frontispiece by Miss C. Paterson, crown 8vo., cloth, price 55 
 
 SOME OPINIONS OF THE PRESS. 
 
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 afraid at one point in the story that the ' lady help ' was to- fall a victim to 
 romantic precedent and become the wife of the heir of the house ; but Mrs. 
 Martin steers clear of such a haven for her heroine, and gives her instead to 
 a clever husband, with whom she finds a congenial home. Our best wishes 
 go with her." Academy. 
 
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 Mrs. Martin may be congratulated on her success in getting sympathy for 
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 Churchyard, London.
 
 Frontispiece, 
 
 1 KNEW YOV WOULD AUMIHE THEM, ELLIE." 
 
 See page 111.
 
 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 A DOMESTIC STORY 
 FOR DAUGHTERS AT HOME. 
 
 BY 
 
 MARIA J. GREER. 
 
 WITH FRONTISPIECE BY A. LUDOVICO. 
 
 Treading a failing world of faults and foes, 
 
 Our hearts keep hard while we ourselves are weak. 
 
 O Love that seest, suffers, pardons all, 
 
 Move us, forgiven, to forgiveness meek 1" 
 
 GRIFFITH AND FARRAN 
 
 (SUCCESSORS TO NEWBERY AND HARRIS), 
 
 CORNER OF ST. PAUL'S CHURCHYARD, LONDON. 
 E. P. DUTTON & CO., NEW YORK.
 
 [The Rights of Translation and of Reproduction are reserved.}
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER 
 
 I. A MYSTERIOUS ANNOUNCEMENT 
 
 II. NEW TO THE WORK 
 
 - 17 
 
 III. IN THE OLD MANOR-HOUSE 30 
 
 IV. WHAT BECAME OF AUNT RACHEL - 46 
 V. THE GOLDEN SCEPTRE 65 
 
 VI. IMMORTAL YOUTH 86 
 
 VII. A DAY OF ALARM IO3 
 
 VIII. COMING EVENTS - - - . _ n 8 
 
 IX. THE DIAMONDS l ^~ 
 
 X. IGNORANCE IS BLISS - 155 
 
 XI. THE VISION ON THE STAIRCASE - - - - 173 
 XII. TOLD IN THE NIGHT ig O 
 
 xiii. FRED'S ANNOUNCEMENT 206 
 
 XIV. THE YOUNG IDEA 2 l6 
 
 XV. MERYLLE'S MYSTERY 
 
 XVI. MY BIRTHDAY 
 
 213SSQ7 
 
 2 3 
 2 4 6
 
 viii CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER *AGK 
 
 XVII. THE GHOST OF A DINNER 258 
 
 XVIII. STARTLING EVENTS 274 
 
 XIX. THE BURNING OF THE PARCHMENT - - - 290 
 
 XX. AN UNEXPECTED VISITOR 3OI 
 
 XXI. MANY-CLOURED LIFE ------ 310 
 
 XXII. SPRING FLOWERS 323
 
 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 A MYSTERIOUS ANNOUNCEMENT. 
 
 " Where summer light is strongest thrown 
 
 The shadows deepen here ; 
 No perfect day is born on earth 
 Without a farewell tear." 
 
 " SHE is a rock of sense." 
 
 " But a rock is a very hard thing, Rachel." 
 
 " And you are very hard to please, let me tell you, 
 Richard." 
 
 "I hope not. Simplicity satisfies me. That is 
 simple enough, surely ?" 
 
 If " those that live in glass houses should not throw 
 stones," those that stand at open windows should not 
 speak loud. I think the proverb ought certainly to 
 be improved upon so far, since there is not even the 
 transparent protection of the glass to avert risk in the 
 latter case. 
 
 The sash of the bow-window in our pretty drawing- 
 
 I
 
 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 room at Crystal Lodge had been thrown up, and I 
 was returning from the garden with some freshly- 
 gathered flowers, when the foregoing remarks reached 
 me. Though no name had been mentioned, I knew 
 by an instinct whom they concerned, and with the 
 blossoms half scattered from my hold, I sprang im- 
 pulsively into the room. 
 
 " Oh, papa, you are not going to give us a gover- 
 ness ?" I exclaimed, running up to the gentleman. 
 
 " Give is not exactly the word, Ellie," he rejoined 
 quietly. " It will cost me something, and if I make a 
 sacrifice you should be ready to yield up your wishes 
 in return." 
 
 I felt my cheeks flushing all over. I divined at 
 once the quarter whence the interference came, and I 
 cast a reproachful glance on Aunt Rachel. She was 
 my father's maiden sister, his senior by six or seven 
 years, and she endeavoured to rule him as well as 
 everybody else. 
 
 It seemed to me hard enough that both father and 
 mother should be leaving us for a time without the 
 added trial of an unwelcome visitant. Their intended 
 departure for New York for an absence of two or three 
 months had only been announced to me the evenin^ 
 before, and I felt nothing of freedom at the thought, 
 only a sense of solitary sadness. I was the eldest of 
 six children, but my responsibilities scarcely weighed 
 upon me when my dear mother was amongst us to 
 direct and determine all. My father, Mr. Wynham
 
 A MYSTERIOUS ANNOUNCEMENT. 3 
 
 was a gentleman of small independent means,, and for 
 some years he had abandoned his profession as a 
 physician, and lived with us quietly in the pretty 
 country place which was our present home. He 
 taught the boys himself, and my mother was the only 
 instructress of my sisters and myself. There was 
 something mysterious about the projected visit which 
 disturbed me now. It was sudden and secret, at least 
 so it seemed to me, though possibly I was not taken 
 as early into the confidence of my elders as I would 
 have wished. Aunt Rachel, unluckily, was on the 
 scene, and I knew that she counselled the discipline 
 of tasks and tuition in our parents' absence. This 
 might be all very well for the younger ones, but not 
 if it involved a restraint over me. I had set a plan 
 before my mind which this suggestion of hers wholly 
 interfered with. I was ambitious of proving a certain 
 talent for rule which I flattered myself I possessed. 
 Doing little as yet, my abilities only extended them- 
 selves to criticism of others ; and thus my experience 
 being limited, my confidence was unbounded. I was 
 fond of management, and eager for authority, and 
 that either would be misplaced in my hands never 
 occurred to my buoyant views. With my seventeen 
 years of wisdom and an untold amount of self-reliance, 
 I was, in my own eyes, the proper person to be placed 
 over the household. 
 
 "Father," I pursued now, "please leave the 
 children with me while you are away. I am certain 
 
 i 2
 
 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 I can manage them. You know Fred is to go to a 
 tutor in the mornings, and surely I can teach the 
 others, and look after them too." 
 
 " You must speak to your mother about it, Ellie," 
 was the reply. " She and your aunt Rachel agree 
 that it would be better to have a governess." 
 
 The mention of my aunt's name completed my re- 
 solve. I .was off in a bound from the drawing-room, 
 flew up the stairs, and had soon gained the apartment 
 overhead where my mother was busily engaged in the 
 process of packing. Her sweet face looked paler than 
 usual, and there was a very troubled expression on it 
 which the little worries attendant on present opera- 
 tions could scarcely have called up. 
 
 Again a feeling of doubt, melancholy, and mysti- 
 cism overcame me, and I could only throw my arms 
 round her neck. 
 
 "Mother, why are you leaving us ?" I cried. " Don't 
 don't go away !" 
 
 She returned my embrace with her warmest clasp, 
 but then, with some resoluteness, she checked emo- 
 tion, and asked me to help her with the folding of a 
 silk dress. 
 
 " Ellie, dear, this journey is a necessity," she mur- 
 mured. " Let us not discuss that, but what changes 
 it involves. Your aunt has mentioned a very excel- 
 lent lady to us, who would take the regulation of 
 everything in our absence." 
 
 "Not of me, I hope," I interposed warmly. "I
 
 A MYSTERIOUS ANNOUNCEMENT. 5 
 
 thought you would have trusted me more than that, 
 mother. I shall be lonely in any case, but I shall be 
 quite wretched if you give me nothing to do. Why 
 cannot I continue lessons with the younger ones ? 
 And as to other matters, I have watched you too 
 long not to know how to jingle a bunch of keys and 
 give a good dinner." 
 
 " But perhaps not a homely one, which is what you 
 will want," said my mother, checking the expression. 
 " This unexpected expedition will put your father and 
 me to a good deal of expense. Carefulness must be 
 borne in mind for some time to come." 
 
 The word " unexpected " was what caught my ear 
 here rather than the implied economy, and my curi- 
 osity was alive anew. But it was in vain to probe my 
 mother on this point. She arrested all inquisitiveness 
 with a calm reticence which was impenetrable. I had 
 to fall back upon the former argument, and assert my 
 capabilities of foresight and frugality with an elo- 
 quence which finally won my cause that is, in a 
 measure. The governess institution was abandoned, 
 but Aunt Rachel was brought in as a terrible substi- 
 tute. She was to keep guard over us all, but I was 
 to house-keep ; she was supposed to inspire awe, I to 
 instil instruction. In fact, she was to be the head, I 
 was to be the hands. The arrangement did not quite 
 suit my views, but it was better in some ways than 
 the first proposal. I was allowed a slight scope for 
 the display of my talents, and I determined to merit
 
 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 approval and applause. It never occurred to me that 
 I might miss both. A failure is only pictured to the 
 eyes of humility. 
 
 The day of departure came. There was beautiful 
 June sunshine without; the air was full of warmth 
 and fragrance, and the carol of happy birds. But a 
 shadow fell on everything for a while as tears veiled 
 the prospect of summer joyousness, and only the 
 sound of farewell echoed in our ears. We children 
 had all gathered together in the portico when the 
 travelling-carriage drew up, and the excitement which 
 the event of a departure always calls up in the 
 youthful mind was held in check now by a species of 
 expectant awe. My father's adieu was hearty, though 
 hurried. 
 
 " God bless you, my darlings," he said ; " and keep 
 you safe and well till we meet again." 
 
 My mother was the last to come out on the steps. 
 Had she not been absorbed very evidently in some 
 thought connected with this strange voyage and dis- 
 tant journeyings she could scarcely have been so 
 composed. As it was, she gazed at the waiting group 
 with almost dreamy intentness, caught each in turn 
 tightly to her heart, and then with a quick, even reso- 
 lute step, followed my father to the carnage. Lucy, 
 the youngest, was the only one who moved her at all. 
 Fred lifted up the child for a last kiss, and as the 
 curly-headed pet, with big tears on her pink cheeks, 
 wound her dimpled arms around mamma's neck and
 
 A MYSTERIOUS ANNOUNCEMENT. 7 
 
 sobbed to be taken with her, my mother leant from 
 the window, and her eyes sought me. 
 
 " Ellen, Ellen !'' she called out with quivering voice, 
 " take care of my little Lucy !" 
 
 It was her parting word, and it struck on me some- 
 how with a half pang. I may as well confess at once 
 that I had jealousy to face as one of my foremost foes, 
 and it proved often a very combative one. The cold 
 elongation of my name now, coupled with the more 
 loving mention of the little one, roused the feeling at 
 once, and for a moment the blank of loneliness, the 
 pain of separation, were scarcely so present as this 
 torturing throb. But they returned all the more 
 keenly afterwards, and with an added sadness. I 
 understood and allowed that my mother was only 
 carrying out my own wish in making me in a degree 
 independent of her care, and remembering another 
 who stood in need of it. If her fondness did not show 
 itself in a last anxious thought for me, could I blame 
 any one but myself? If I constituted myself the first 
 in one way, and chose to stand strong and self-confi- 
 dent, I must become secondary in another. I could 
 not expect in their fullest measure both trust and ten- 
 derness. 
 
 I was roused from reverie by the voice of Aunt 
 Rachel. She was calling to me from the library, 
 where she held herself ensconced in a sort of chair of 
 state. The parting for her had been borne stoically 
 in the seclusion of this retreat, and she signified her
 
 8 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 pleasure now to have us all marshalled before her for 
 a kind of roll-call. 
 
 Aunt Rachel was scarcely a favourite in our circle. 
 She was too full of oddities to fall in easily with a 
 child's fancies, or accommodate herself to juvenile 
 tastes. Her dress even was against her. It was 
 formed on some principle of rainbow effects, which 
 was more curious than captivating. I have often 
 wondered why such dreadful dyes are invented and 
 awful articles manufactured, but wonder must cease on 
 view of the chosen garb of my aunt Rachel. Her pet 
 gown was a mixture of orange and green silk ; and, 
 as she generally adopted crimson in her cap, it is 
 superfluous to add that her presence was formidable. 
 
 When we answered her summons on the present 
 occasion I, of course, headed the procession. Next 
 to me came Fred. He was three years my junior, 
 but his age, or rather his youth, did not intimidate 
 him. He was a daring boy, full of spirits and auda- 
 city. The love of teasing was his governing principle 
 as yet, the champagne of his existence, kept always 
 at high pressure, and ready to be let off at unexpected 
 moments with explosive effect. Merylle, who followed 
 close upon his steps now, was the nearest to him like- 
 wise in age. She was just thirteen, but scarcely 
 looked so much, being round in form and rosy in face, 
 quite a chubby child in fact, instead of a slim, steady 
 girl as she ought to have been. 
 
 Fred was so fond of her and she of him that he
 
 A MYSTERIOUS ANNOUNCEMENT. 9 
 
 could make her do just what he pleased, and as his 
 movements were not always worthy of imitation this 
 touching affection was of dubious excellence. 
 
 A space came again between Merylle and Dick. 
 The latter was only nine, but, seeing what he was, I 
 might have spared the "only." To have been older 
 would have been deplorable disgrace, with his wild 
 ways and blackened face. Dick, I lament to say, was 
 seldom clean. He had always a smudge somewhere, 
 acquired by some mysterious and infallible process of 
 his own which baffled prevention or detection. In fact, 
 one word will suffice for Dick. He may be simply 
 and vividly described as a " pickle." 
 
 George, aged seven, was a solemn child. He spake 
 little, but ate amply. He had large dark eyes, which 
 were not particularly expressive, and pale somewhat 
 puffed cheeks. The quest of food was plainly his 
 one object in life at present, and he followed it with a 
 devotion worthy of a better cause. I always thought 
 my mother indulged him too much in this way, and I 
 had sketched out a scheme in my mind for raising 
 him resolutely to a more elevated tone of being. 
 
 Lucy, the youngest little darling, has been already 
 mentioned, and as she was the pet and plaything of 
 the household, I need scarcely say that she was lovely 
 and endearing. Indeed, she was the only one amongst 
 us with any "hints" of beauty. Merylle might develop 
 into anything ; but, as she stood now, a dumpling was 
 the nearest comparison to be found for her; and as to
 
 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 myself, too high a colour and too low a forehead, too 
 thick hair and too thin a figure, gave me a grotesque 
 air, as if I were top heavy, and needed some proper 
 ballast to the system. 
 
 Aunt Rachel viewed the array set before her with 
 scrutiny, even suspicion, as if we were already in a 
 state of insubordination. As we were not so, but 
 rather meek and depressed, the imputation was irri- 
 tating, and Fred resisted it in the way most natural 
 to him. 
 
 He began an expressive action with his eyes, 
 twirled his fingers into some apt imitation of aunt's 
 head-gear, and caught a foot surreptitiously round 
 Dick, all but sending him flat upon his face. Merylle 
 gave a feeble titter, and aunt pounced upon her forth- 
 with. She was rather afraid of Fred. 
 
 " You unfeeling little girl !" she exclaimed. " Are 
 you actually laughing ? and your dear parents only 
 driven from the door! They are driven fast from 
 your thoughts at all events. I don't know what 
 children of the present day are coming to ! The very 
 name of my grandmother was enough for me." 
 
 I did not quite see the connection here, or how the 
 name of grandmother was to bear upon the memory 
 of a mother. However, Aunt Rachel had evidently 
 satisfied herself with the utterance. She struck her 
 hand emphatically on a table before her, and seemed 
 to think a climax had been reached. 
 
 " I will take them off to their lessons," I interposed,
 
 A MYSTERIOUS ANNOUNCEMENT. n 
 
 assuming the authority I pined for. I might not have 
 gained it at once without an intervening lecture, but 
 for a favourable conjuncture. Aunt, luckily, had her 
 pug to attend to, and as this duty occupied the first 
 precious moments of the day, she let us depart with a 
 groan. 
 
 "We are to have a holiday, to-day; mamma pro- 
 mised it," said Merylle, the moment we were outside 
 the door. 
 
 " Only a half one, as I understood it," I rejoined, 
 "and Merylle, I believe you are a heartless little girl. 
 Would you really wish to go and play at once ?" 
 
 " And would you really wish to go and teach ?" she 
 retorted. 
 
 "That is a different affair," I began hotly, but Fred 
 stopped me. 
 
 " I tell you what it is," he exclaimed. " We will 
 start for the hay-field, take our books with us, and 
 read under one of the ricks. That's not out of course 
 eh, Nell ?" 
 
 I scarcely liked to let the law pass so quickly from 
 my hands. Still, to begin with contention like Aunt 
 Rachel was worse policy again, and I yielded assent. 
 
 " We will bring Lucy with us," added Fred, catch- 
 ing up his cap, and popping something like a battered 
 mushroom on Merylle's head. " You can have Dick 
 and George." 
 
 But this was too much. To leave me this dreadful 
 remnant of the family while he surrounded himself
 
 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 with the more choice members was dethronement at 
 once. I felt my face in a glow. 
 
 "You shall not have Lucy," I broke out excitedly. 
 " She has been entrusted especially to me. The boys 
 I will hand over to you with pleasure." 
 
 Dick shrank from the offer, and put a blackened 
 finger appealingly on my arm. He stood in whole- 
 some dread of Master Fred, who teased him unmerci- 
 fully. As to George, whatever he felt, he could utter 
 nothing. He had already an immense bun in his 
 mouth, a parting gift from his mother. But for the 
 sake of the donor he should not have demolished it in 
 peace, but I could not find it in my heart to check 
 him so soon. The matter was ended by the disap- 
 pearance of Fred and Merylle in close partnership, 
 while the three little ones were left in a touching 
 group around me. When I entered the schoolroom, 
 and had placed them on high chairs by the table with 
 picture-books spread out before them, I felt that I had 
 done my part for the present, and I subsided into a 
 sort of reverie. From this I was roused by a call from 
 Aunt Rachel. 
 
 "Ellen, have you seen about dinner?" she de- 
 manded. " Remember it is to be at two o'clock in 
 future. And Flossy is not very well to-day, so you 
 had better order spring chickens, and then he can 
 have a bit of the liver." 
 
 Had I been partial to lap-dogs this suggestion 
 would have been too much for me. As it was, I had
 
 A MYSTERIOUS ANNOUNCEMENT. 13 
 
 no love for a plethoric pet like Flossy, and I deter- 
 mined that for that day the feathered tribe should, 
 one and all, prolong their existence, even if his were 
 shortened thereby. 
 
 I liked the sound of the keys as I trotted along the 
 passage with the big bunch at my side, but I did not 
 particularly relish what they opened the way to. The 
 store-closets were well stocked, it is true, but I found 
 it wearisome work weighing out and tidying up, and no 
 longer wondered at the time my mother had bestowed 
 upon this duty. More than once I had called to her 
 impatiently when she was in the midst of her opera- 
 tions, and had thought it tiresome she could not come 
 immediately. I had said to myself, at such times, 
 that I could get through the process much quicker. I 
 would have no consultations with the cook, but would 
 give forth my mandates clearly and concisely. If I had 
 substituted for these terms " obstinately and obtusely," 
 I should have been nearer the mark, at all events ac- 
 cording to my coadjutor's reading of them. I decided 
 smartly enough what we should have for dinner, but 
 as the joints specified did not happen to be in the 
 larder, not much way was made here. Cook was mis- 
 tress after all not only suggested but governed 
 settled the dinner and me too. I thought I might hold 
 a higher hand when we came to the sweet-meat de- 
 partment. Surely a " trifle " was not beyond me ? 
 But I had just awoke to the humiliating fact that even 
 here ignorance prevailed, and that the dish could not
 
 14 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 be produced without preliminary notice, when an 
 awful scream reached me from the schoolroom. The 
 glass bowl I outheld might have been reeling under 
 tipsy-cake already, it tottered so helplessly in my 
 hands. Fortunately the cook caught it from me, but 
 I came into undignified collision with her at the 
 moment as I sprang wildly over the threshold. 
 
 The voice had been Lucy's, or it might not have 
 moved me so much, and I was breathless when I 
 reached the schoolroom. The first vision was George 
 with another bun puffed into his cheeks, and his eyes 
 as vacuous as ever. His food supply being uninter- 
 rupted, no change could be looked for in him. Not 
 so elsewhere. 
 
 Dick seemed to have quadrupled his limbs in a 
 mad scramble over the table to compass or conceal 
 something. I need scarcely say that he was blacker 
 than ever, for a huge ink-bottle had been upset, the 
 contents streamed abroad, arid he was arresting their 
 course bodily. In a first panic he had caught at 
 Lucy's head as a mop. Her pretty curls were be- 
 sprinkled and bedabbled, and she was in a torrent of 
 tears. 
 
 I could not help it I had made a vow against cor- 
 poral punishment, but it was broken forthwith. In 
 a second I had seized Dick, and boxed his ears 
 soundly. I did not come spotless out of the trans- 
 action. There was a stain on my white cuff, and the 
 thought that I had yielded to passion left a deeper
 
 A MYSTERIOUS ANNOUNCEMENT. 15 
 
 blot behind. Often had I felt impatient with my 
 dear mother for her forbearance, and had fancied 
 more effect could be gained by peremptoriness, but 
 the thought of her calm sweet face was a reproach to 
 me now. 
 
 I was flushed and panting, Dick was howling, and 
 Lucy's woe, instead of being appeased by my action, 
 was doubly aggravated. She was a gentle child, and 
 could never bear anything of a disturbance. To 
 punish another was almost as bad to her as personal 
 chastisement. 
 
 When the fracas was in a measure abated I be- 
 thought me of my open store-room, my incomplete 
 arrangements, and had to rush off again. The result 
 of inexperience was a dinner behind time, appetites 
 before it, servants out of sorts, and Aunt Rachel out 
 of patience. Other matters fell out adversely too. 
 Despite the lateness of the repast Fred and Merylle 
 appeared at it with not only unsmoothed hair, but 
 with sundry hay-straws adhering to it in porcupine 
 fashion. Aunt bristled at the sight, and a passage of 
 arms would have been imminent, had I not rushed in 
 to their rescue with apologies and assurances. 
 
 " This has been a holiday, aunt," I said ; "and they 
 are making the most of it and the sunshine. To- 
 morrow you will see what better order we shall be in. 
 I will look after them well." 
 
 The promise was easily spoken, but my own heart 
 failed me, even as it was made. Already I missed
 
 1 6 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 the gentle ruling hand which did everything in love 
 without noise or anger, and recognised how inade- 
 quate was mine to replace it. 
 
 When I retired to my room at night, I felt a few 
 tears stealing from beneath my lashes as I looked out 
 through the open window on the summer prospect 
 which had grown lonely, and saw a sort of veil of 
 sadness stealing over each well-known object. Some- 
 thing was wanting, something was absent when the 
 " good-night " of loving parents had not a lingering 
 echo in my ears. Silence became oppressive, solitude 
 haunting, and I only slept at last by the oft repetition 
 of my evening hymn. 
 
 " The day is passing from me, 
 But night hath no alarms, 
 For Jesus is my Guardian, 
 He holds me in His arms. 
 
 " In shade, in happy sunlight 
 
 No change shuts out His smile, 
 When eyelids close full wearied 
 Love waketh all the while. 
 
 "And I will trust Him truly, 
 
 Though darkness groweth deep, 
 He watching over Israel 
 Will slumber not nor sleep."
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 NEW TO THE WORK. 
 
 " Hope rules a land for ever green ; 
 All powers that serve the bright-eyed queen 
 
 Are confident and gay ; 
 Clouds at her bidding disappear ; 
 Points she to aught? the bliss draws near 
 And fancy smooths the way." 
 
 WORDSWORTH. 
 
 I ROSE the next morning braced and buoyant. I 
 had undertaken a duty and I meant to perform it. 
 So far, all was well. But my confidence had not de- 
 parted. It had yielded in no way to humility. My 
 own strength seemed sufficient for me, and I went 
 forth in it anew. 
 
 During the absence of the heads of the household, 
 it had been arranged that we were all to have our 
 meals together, and at the children's early hours 
 The dining-room, however, was substituted for the 
 nursery ; and the little ones, being enfranchised so far, 
 became unduly elated. George, it is true, remained 
 solemn as ever ; but as his gravity had a close affinity 
 to greediness, I scarcely rated it very high. 
 
 2
 
 1 8 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 Aunt Rachel appeared in gloom, a dread weight 
 upon her brow. Even her cap seemed sombre, and 
 nodded ominously. Black lace had replaced white in 
 it, and the red ribbon had faded into purple. Flossy 
 had not recovered yet, and was borne in tenderly in 
 a basket. I saw that aunt eyed Fred closely and sus- 
 piciously, and wondered what was wrong. 
 
 He, smiling as ever, settled himself at the breakfast 
 table with some preliminary attention to Dick, which 
 left him shaky on his high chair. I had been glowing 
 with pride hitherto. Dick was spotless. His "over- 
 all " uncrumpled, his hair shining, his cheeks fresh as 
 a rose. But at this juncture his mug of cocoa went 
 over him instantaneously. I think the catastrophe 
 rather relieved him. The unnatural strain of tidiness 
 was too much for his repose. 
 
 Aunt Rachel, however, rose in a fume. 
 
 " This is intolerable !" she cried. " Who could sit 
 at table with such children? one and all are the 
 same. Some one fastened a cord to the bottom of 
 my door last night, and when I opened it this morn- 
 ing Eliza, the housemaid, was nearly taken off her 
 feet. The strings stretched everywhere." 
 
 " It wasn't me" exclaimed Dick impulsively, and 
 his mug was just gone again. 
 
 George was speechless, but then that couldn't count 
 for much, seeing that his cheeks were distended, and 
 a thick slice of bread and butter had already vanished 
 from off his plate.
 
 NEW TO THE WORK. 19 
 
 All eyes were turned on Fred. 
 
 " It was you, sir I know it !" said my aunt fiercely. 
 
 " I I was working out a mathematical problem," 
 began Fred ; but I stopped him at once. 
 
 Now or never I felt that my authority must inter- 
 pose. 
 
 " Fred, I am ashamed of you !" I exclaimed. " I 
 wonder you would be such a baby as to play pranks 
 ' like these. You promised your father you would be- 
 have quietly and rationally. You were to help me, 
 he said." 
 
 "Oh! and what prodigies have you been up to, 
 Nell, that I was to bear a hand in ?" was the retort. 
 " Lucy was crying all the evening, George more 
 crammed than ever, and I seldom saw Dick such a 
 pickle. He was too much of a blackamoor even to 
 torment." 
 
 I felt my ire rising, but checked it. To enter into 
 a controversy with Fred before all the juvenile party 
 would have been an undignified proceeding, and one 
 involving a possible defeat. Fortunately a diversion 
 was caused by the appearance of the letter-bag. 
 
 A few lines came from my mother, announcing 
 their arrival as far as Liverpool, and Aunt Rachel got 
 two lengthy epistles from maiden friends, which oc- 
 cupied her till the conclusion of the repast. Family 
 prayers followed then, and Aunt Rachel, with spec- 
 tacles on her nose, seated herself before the big Bible. 
 The children were always orderly at such times, and 
 
 2 2
 
 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 I had them in a steady row before me, when Fred 
 suddenly broke the ranks. 
 
 Aunt was feeling about for her footstool, which 
 seemed an indispensable adjunct, as giving her a more 
 enthroned air, and I was glad to see him attentive in 
 pushing it towards her. 
 
 But at the moment an awful yell broke forth. 
 Aunt leaped from her seat, and Fred gained his in a 
 bound. She had put her foot full upon Flossy. 
 The pug had crept out of his basket to the soft 
 cushion, and this was the support proffered so eagerly 
 by Fred. 
 
 Commotion followed, and aunt's wrath was so ter- 
 rible that I had finally to read the chapter myself. 
 When it was ended I took Fred seriously to task. 
 But his spirits were beyond depression by rebuke, and 
 I had to give him up in despair. 
 
 This was the day for him to begin work with his 
 tutor, and I could only hope that mental exercise 
 might tame him in a measure. Mr. Locke, the gentle- 
 man with whom he was to read, had only recently 
 settled in the neighbourhood. He was the new 
 curate, and had taken a pretty cottage about half a 
 mile distant from Crystal Lodge. His engagement 
 to a young lady in his former parish was at once 
 announced by our rather garrulous rector, and it was 
 an understood thing that as soon as he had obtained 
 pupils enough to add a proper increase to his income, 
 his happiness need no further be deferred.
 
 NEW TO THE WORK. 21 
 
 None of us but my father had seen him yet, and 
 as Fred was to go to his house, it was not probable, 
 at all events at present, that we should know much 
 of him. Aunt Rachel did not approve of gentle- 
 men on the whole, and though an engaged man 
 carried an air of safety with him, still his bachelor's 
 degree clung about him, and he might at any moment 
 become a " Master of Arts." 
 
 Fred started punctually for the cottage, the novelty 
 of the thing having attraction for him as yet; and once 
 his perplexing presence was removed, I gathered the 
 children around me gravely in the schoolroom. Dick 
 was supposed to be " bright " not in his person, it is 
 superfluous to say, but in some inward nook of his 
 mind which could not come in contact with external 
 soil. Arithmetic was his strong point, and to this he 
 begged to be set now, though I quailed a little at the 
 prospect. I was weak in the line ; figures presented 
 themselves to me more formidably than an array of 
 artillery, and if he caught me tripping, I was prostrate 
 at once. To shoot ahead of me in ciphering was fatal 
 to my rule in fact, to make a cipher of me. However, 
 with the help of a " key " I might hold my own, and 
 Dick was posed presently with an immense slate 
 before him, and an excruciating cutter. 
 
 Merylle I steadied on the piano-stool with a shake. 
 It was the only way of awakening her to a sense of 
 work and duty. Dear little Lucy had not much to do 
 as yet; thus only one member of the party remained
 
 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 to be looked to. But a glance here was enough. 
 When I turned to George, he seemed utterly hopeless. 
 His eyes were more meaningless than ever, and his 
 mouth was evidently -still full. As his hands were 
 closed tightly over something, I loosened them per 
 force and discovered a roll of bread surreptitiously 
 appropriated from my aunt's plate. 
 
 When I took it from him he howled howled pite- 
 ously and persistently, and, in self-defence, I had to 
 yield it up again to his clasp. George unhappily had 
 been delicate as a child, and his life was at one time 
 despaired of. The first symptom of recovery had 
 shown itself in a marvellous appetite, which had 
 never failed him since. My mother hailed this with 
 such rapture at the time that her delight was pro- 
 longed and she could never bring herself to check it. 
 But I determined in my own mind that if his illness 
 were a thing of the past this inordinate state of 
 hunger might be relegated to the same regions. I 
 brought him up to my side for a geography lesson 
 now, and plied him so closely with questions that all 
 his organs were kept in play, and devotion to his 
 favourite work was impossible. But he grew pallid 
 and helpless under the process, and I began to feel 
 that it might be carried too far. 
 
 Meanwhile Dick's slate pencil was working agonis- 
 ingly, and he appeared suddenly at my elbow with 
 the most awful rows of figures, jotted down in mad- 
 dening contiguity. He had erased them more than
 
 NEW TO THE WORK. 23 
 
 once with his sleeve, after a previous approach to 
 his face, and his nose and lips, if not exactly 
 black, were at all events leaden. I was glad in one 
 way of the smears everywhere, for they afforded me 
 cause for rejecting the production with indignant 
 recoil. 
 
 " Take it away !" I exclaimed. " How dare you 
 bring me up a concoction like that ? Learn to be 
 tidy, whatever you are." 
 
 "It's a sum in decimal fractions," said Dick, im- 
 ploringly ; " and not a figure wrong. I've gone over 
 it twice." 
 
 " That I have no doubt of," I rejoined. " It's just 
 what's amiss. I'll have none of that rubbing out and 
 going over. Contrive to bring it right the first time. 
 Be clever, correct, and, above all, clean." 
 
 With these words I waved him off, and turned 
 resolutely to the piano. Merylle had been strumming 
 busily at her " exercises," but whether the fault lay in 
 them or her manipulation, music was wholly absent 
 from the performance. It was loud, almost defiant in 
 its noisiness. I had just given her a tap over the 
 knuckles to tone her down, when I heard my aunt 
 calling to me. 
 
 "Ellen," she exclaimed, "you are forgetting the 
 dinner." 
 
 And so I was. In haste I left Merylle and all to 
 their devices and sallied forth. I encountered aunt 
 on the threshold of the schoolroom, and begged of
 
 24 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 her to show herself within, and keep guard in my 
 absence. 
 
 She consented with a groan, but scarcely had she 
 entered than a peal of laughter greeted her. In 
 some fluttered attentions to the pug she had set her 
 cap awry, and with it the front beneath. A corkscrew 
 curl was over her left eye, and a grey lock peeped out 
 on the opposite temple. 
 
 " Oh, Aunt Rachel, what's happened to you ?" cried 
 Dick. " You do look so queer !" 
 
 Aunt, I believe, went over and shook him, but this 
 was hazardous work, considering the state of her 
 head-gear, and it might have been wiser to forbear. 
 I had thoughts at first of reappearing on the scene, 
 but really I had so many reproofs to give on my own 
 account, I decided it was as well to let aunt fight her 
 own battles. 
 
 Later on that day a species of calm was restored. 
 Fred had returned from tutelage a little sobered, and 
 I had brought the rest into comparative training. 
 Thus satisfied and reassured, I permitted play to the 
 young ones without, and ensconced myself in a win- 
 dow-seat in the library, with a book in my hands. I 
 had my own reading to think of, and it had been 
 rather neglected of late. I was deep at the time in 
 " Macaulay," and I resumed with pleasure now my 
 interrupted perusal of a charming essay. 
 
 Only a few minutes, however, had elapsed till an 
 arrest came. It was in the form of a ring at the hall
 
 NEW TO THE WORK. 25 
 
 door. We had not many visitors, and I was running 
 over our " list of friends " in my mind when the 
 library door opened abruptly that is, a slit admitted 
 espial, and Fred's eye gleamed in. 
 
 "Old Locke's come!" he said. "He asked for 
 ' Miss Wynham,' but that means you not Aunt 
 Rachel. Be off to him, Nell." 
 
 I rose from my seat, pushed my curls a little 
 smoother off my brow, but did not dare to proceed 
 further. Aunt Rachel, I knew, was in the drawing- 
 room, and to appear there unsummoned before a 
 gentleman-visitant was out of the question. Suddenly 
 I heard her step in the passage, and she sailed in to 
 me in a flutter. She had on her crimson cap, and 
 there was a marvellous gold brooch fastening a rain- 
 bow tie around the " neck " of her green silk gown. 
 
 '" The new curate, Mr. Locke, is here," she an- 
 nounced. " He has asked for the young people, so 
 you had better come in. Remember, Ellen, he is 
 engaged," she added sternly, as if she were confiding 
 to me some solemn fact which concerned my own 
 future. 
 
 I could scarcely keep my countenance, and I fear 
 when I appeared in the drawing-room there was none 
 of that meek gravity about me suitable to the occa- 
 sion. I had settled beforehand that the gentleman 
 would be tall, spare, and bowed, with scanty hair and 
 subdued features. The clerical presence, viewed 
 through the medium of our rector, Mr. Horton, had
 
 26 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 always impressed me thus, and surely 'one who com- 
 bined the duties of master with those of pastor must 
 inevitably be reduced to a physique of the kind. 
 The actual vision, however, was a perfect contrast to 
 my portrait. Mr. Locke was of erect bearing, and 
 showed no signs of emaciation yet. He was healthy 
 and hearty looking, with a frank open face and clear 
 grey eyes, which met mine with a pleasant glance of 
 greeting. 
 
 " This is the eldest girl," said my aunt patronisingly, 
 as if I were still in pinafores. " The others have got 
 loose, and there is no saying where they may be." 
 
 " I think I could give a good guess," returned the 
 curate, smiling. " I saw some moving hay-cocks as 
 I came up the lawn, and caught merry voices from 
 beneath, which betrayed the cause of the pheno- 
 menon." 
 
 "Of course they are in mischief wherever they 
 are," said my aunt. " Pray, how did the eldest lad 
 get on with you to-day ? You must have had a sad 
 task with him." 
 
 " By no means," said Mr. Locke. " He is a very 
 ' bright boy.' " 
 
 " But does he know anything ?" 
 
 "Certainly he does. He is far advanced for his 
 age." 
 
 The answer was not what might have been expected. 
 I have heard it said that a new instructor feels him- 
 self bound to give a low estimate of what he has taken
 
 NEW TO THE WORK. 
 
 in hand as a standing-point from which to measure 
 future progress. Thus Mr. Locke's candour had the 
 greater merit. The verdict was too favourable, 
 however, to please Aunt Rachel, but of course the 
 gentleman could not know that, and he pursued 
 pleasantly : 
 
 " I consider that he has been very well and care- 
 fully grounded. May I ask what school he h as been 
 at ?" 
 
 " Papa taught him," I exclaimed delightedly. 
 
 " Yes ; and a great deal too much for him it was," 
 croaked Aunt Rachel. " I only wonder his health 
 stood it so long. It is well he was able to take this 
 change now." 
 
 I started at her words, and something of a new 
 pain shot to my heart. Was it possible my father 
 was unwell? Was this the explanation of the 
 mysterious voyage and absence ? 
 
 " Papa, he is not ill ?" I ejaculated, and in my 
 eagerness I sprang from my seat. 
 
 " Sit down, Ellen," said my aunt reprovingly. 
 
 The want of dignity in my motions shocked her, 
 and she looked almost aghast. My anxiety, however, 
 was greater than my decorum, or rather than her 
 desire for it, and I repeated the question. 
 
 " But is there anything wrong ? Do tell me, Aunt 
 Rachel !" 
 
 " There is something very wrong in this impulsive- 
 ness," was the reply. " You saw your father as lately
 
 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 as I did, Ellen. There is no reason to get into a 
 panic." 
 
 The answer might have seemed evasive from any 
 one else, and have quickened alarm. But, remem- 
 bering Aunt Rachel's tone of mind, and her tendency 
 to throw blame upon us at all hazards, I felt in a 
 measure reassured. 
 
 Mr. Locke had the good taste and tact to give a 
 prompt and pleasant turn to the conversation, and I 
 felt grateful to him for the good humour into which 
 he beguiled my aunt before he took his departure. 
 He told us of a school-feast that was to be given in 
 some neighbouring grounds on an early day in the 
 next week, and hoped for our presence and assistance 
 on the occasion. He charmed Aunt Rachel by an 
 expression of his confidence in her powers of aid and 
 organisation, and she acquiesced with an unwonted 
 alacrity. In fact, whatever else he might prove to be, 
 Mr. Locke was a genial discreet man, and surely 
 praise must attach to any one who helps to smooth 
 matters in life. There is a joy in sunshine which 
 warms and gladdens, and that which comes from a 
 cheerful heart is as welcome as the beams in nature. 
 I fancy people pride themselves sometimes upon 
 ruggedness as a test of sincerity, and think honesty 
 is only compatible with harshness. Poor Aunt Rachel 
 seemed to have leanings to the impression, but it 
 was evidently a wrong one, judging by the effects. I 
 began already to understand that " the law of kind-
 
 NEW TO THE WORK. 29 
 
 ness " is that which leads. Any other method must 
 evoke resistance and rebellion. 
 
 Scarcely had Mr. Locke made his adieu than I 
 sought once more the company of " Macaulay." But I 
 was not left long to the enjoyment of our tete-a-tete. 
 Fred, full of his tutor, broke in upon me suddenly. 
 
 " Well, Nell, what do you think of him ?" he ex- 
 claimed. " Isn't he a brick ?" 
 
 " I don't know about that," I laughed. " But he 
 has cemented a friendship with Aunt Rachel, at all 
 events." 
 
 Fred uttered a low whistle. 
 
 " I only hope it may last," he murmured, " and my 
 fortune's built up. I've got the clerical ear already, 
 but Aunt Rachel's is too deaf a one to gain without 
 the aid of a speaking-trumpet." 
 
 " And what have you in view, Fred ?" I demanded, 
 for I saw that some plot requiring mystery and mani- 
 pulation was brewing in his thoughts. 
 
 " Never mind, Ellie," he returned, with a gleam of 
 his brown eyes. " If it's a secret, I can't tell you ; 
 and if it's none, find out for yourself."
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 IN THE OLD MANOR-HOUSE. 
 
 " If solid happiness we prize, 
 Within our breast this jewel lies, 
 And they are fools who roam. 
 The world has nothing to bestow, 
 From our own selves our joys must flow, 
 And that dear spot our home." 
 
 N. COTTON. 
 
 IN the midst of minor thoughts and troubles I had 
 an important matter to keep in mind. This was a 
 visit to Uncle George. It had been one of my 
 mother's last and most emphatic charges to pay this 
 call of duty on the fixed day of the month which was 
 always devoted to it. Uncle George lived the life of 
 a recluse, but he did not like to be neglected. He 
 made no attempts at sociability which involved 
 trouble on his side, but I think he looked all the more 
 anxiously for those tokens of remembrance from with- 
 out, which we can few of us dispense with. 
 
 To check the expressions of love and kindliness is 
 often to create a void in the heart which renders it
 
 IN THE OLD MANOR-HOUSE. 31 
 
 restless and requiring. We none of us care to feel 
 alone, however exclusive we may be in shutting out 
 unwelcome intrusions. 
 
 Uncle George surrounded himself with gloom and 
 solitude, expecting at the same time that others should 
 be anxious to break in upon them, and that, however 
 he might forget, he should never be forgotten. His 
 abode was an old manor-house, situated on the out- 
 skirts of our nearest market-town. The dwelling- 
 place was like himself, built up in a rigid seclusion. 
 A high wall, surmounted further by a trellis-work 
 hung with a thick veil of foliage, hid every vestige of 
 house and garden from the road. The wooden gate 
 which gave access to the enclosure they occupied was 
 always locked, and when the bell outside was pulled, 
 a sort of startled thrill rang through the lonely man- 
 sion, as if it were bound in a spell like that of the 
 Sleeping Palace, and were awakening from a trance 
 of prolonged duration. The portal once opened, a 
 tall man appeared in dingy black, or peered, rather, 
 through an aperture which seemed to repel instead of 
 invite admission. 
 
 I had heard it whispered that uncle was a miser, 
 and certainly, if he were not poor, he was unquestion- 
 ably penurious. There was nothing hearty or hos- 
 pitable about his surroundings. The servants looked 
 ancient and attenuated, the rooms were cheerless 
 filled in winter with a thin atmosphere of smoke 
 emitted from unkindled fires rather than with the
 
 32 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 glow of warmth and geniality. Considering this state 
 of things, a visit in the summer-time was more en- 
 joyable, and I braced myself up for the venture now 
 with a proper amount of confidence. 
 
 There was not only a stated day for our reception 
 at the Manor-House, but a fixed hour. Three o'clock 
 was the time. It was supposed luncheon or dinner 
 would be finished then, tea would be in the fore- 
 ground, and no refreshment need be offered. My 
 mother had directed me to bring all the children- -all 
 except Fred he was a significant exception. How- 
 ever it were, whether the cause lay in reason or 
 prejudice, the presence of my eldest brother was pro- 
 hibited. For years he had not seen Uncle George, 
 and his name was never mentioned to him. 
 
 Fred bore the deprivation beautifully ; in fact, at 
 times he was apt to wax jubilant on this score when 
 he saw us all marshalled in ominous procession 
 towards the stern habitation. There might be duty 
 in the proceeding, but assuredly he saw no pleasure 
 in it. 
 
 One fair summer morning which rose refreshed from 
 a night of rain, I made preparations for the excursion. 
 I advanced our early dinner to a still more primitive 
 hour, that we might have time for the drive of five 
 miles afterwards. 
 
 I gave the children a half holiday, hoping it might 
 induce in them a more amiable frame of mind in which 
 to meet the coming ordeal. But I believe the indul-
 
 IN THE OLD MANOR-HOUSE. 33 
 
 gence had disastrous effects. With emancipation 
 from rule came the excitement of mischief. 
 
 Before the starting hour arrived I was aghast at 
 their state, and Aunt Rachel was tragic. Dick had 
 fallen into the duck-pond, George was so crammed with 
 gooseberries that he could barely stand, and even little 
 Lucy had contrived to tear a new frock, arid scratch 
 herself in the bramble-bushes. Merylle looked rather 
 plumper than ever, but that I could scarcely attack 
 her for, so she escaped with comparative immunity. 
 
 Punctually at two o'clock our old-fashioned carriage 
 was drawn up. It was a big, roomy vehicle with a 
 rumble at the back, and was thought best suited to 
 the undertaking we had in hand. By force of physical 
 exertion I collected the children thereupon in tolerable 
 trim and temper. 
 
 Aunt Rachel stood in the hall to see us off, but she 
 was terribly cross, for she looked upon this visit in 
 which she was to have no part as a sort of evasion of 
 her authority. Uncle George Merlin was my mother's 
 brother, and it seems as if connections by marriage 
 too often contract a cold distrust of one another. 
 Furthermore, an added cause of dissension entered 
 into this case in the unfailing apple of discord. 
 
 Money matters, I have remarked, come largely into 
 the question of matrimony, no matter what start love 
 may have had in the affair. Such had brought their 
 necessary train of evils at the time of my parents' 
 marriage. Uncle George was supposed to have be- 
 
 3
 
 34 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 haved unhandsomely in regard to the settlements 
 made upon his sister, and Aunt Rachel had never 
 forgiven him. 
 
 " I think this is a most absurd expedition," she ex- 
 claimed now. " Are you certain, Ellen, that your father 
 wished it ?" 
 
 " Mother did, at all events," I said. " She gave me 
 strict injunctions not to neglect to go, and I am sure 
 my father would not like her wishes to be disregarded, 
 whatever further care he may have in the matter." 
 
 I announced this with a certain amount of dignity 
 and resolve, for I felt that there was an injustice in 
 checking me in the path of duty, especially before the 
 children. 
 
 Aunt Rachel was always interfering with me, and 
 the course was irritating, to say the least of it. It had 
 been intended she should help, not direct, but without 
 open discussion it seemed difficult to place matters on 
 a fair footing. 
 
 When we had driven off I was so vexed for a few 
 minutes that I could not speak, and I neither saw nor 
 heeded what was around. But anger surely is a mis- 
 take. It troubles and disturbs the breast too much 
 to be long indulged in. Happily in its meditative 
 stage it cannot injure others, but it takes due revenge 
 upon ourselves. 
 
 " Ellie, what makes you so silent ?" exclaimed 
 Merylle at length. " We must begin to be naughty 
 or you will be stupid."
 
 IN THE OLD MANOR-HOUSE. 35 
 
 I roused myself at the words. The alternative was 
 so possible a one that it excited vigilance, and this 
 was a more salutary state of mind, restoring a healthy 
 action to the circulation. 
 
 I had put Merylle and George on the front seat, 
 and kept Dick and Lucy, one on either side of my- 
 self. 
 
 Properly speaking, George, by right of juvenility, 
 should have been more directly under my wing. But 
 after his feast amidst the gooseberries I looked upon 
 him with disapprobation. Despite of the probability 
 of a black smudge on my sleeve, Dick's proximity was 
 preferable. 
 
 We reached the Manor-House and its stern portal 
 without adventure, and while the coachman reined in 
 the horses, I sprang out to pull at the bell. I started 
 at the moment, and a faint scream escaped me. 
 
 A hand had come over mine, and grasped the 
 handle before me. The action was affrighting, savour- 
 ing of some spiritual manifestation, and I glanced 
 quickly around. If no ghost or goblin were there, the 
 vision was quite as terrible. I saw the curly head and 
 round mischievous eyes of my brother Fred. He had 
 been in hiding in the rumble, had just leaped from 
 it, and was ready now to present himself first of all 
 to the forbidden presence. I was so frightened I 
 could scarcely articulate, but my face showed my 
 feelings. 
 
 " Oh, Nell, don't look so awful !" exclaimed_Fred 
 
 32
 
 36 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 with a laugh. " Why should I be put out of the 
 running and neglect my duty to the old gentleman ? 
 I don't care what you say or think, it's prime good of 
 me to come." 
 
 In the emergency I dropped anger and authority. 
 Persuasion I felt was the only course. 
 
 "Fred," I implored, "don't show yourself. You 
 know it mustn't be. Mother said it. Would you dis- 
 obey her because she can't see or stop you now ? 
 and she so far away from us !" and I almost broke 
 down at the words. 
 
 By this time the gate was opened, and the thin 
 butler, more raven-like than ever, stood in the aper- 
 ture. My voice trembled so when I asked for Uncle 
 Merlin, that the whole proceeding grew ominous, and 
 I heard George groan. 
 
 These visits were trying times for him. The air of 
 chill and famine which pervaded everything was in- 
 tensified in his case by the dread reality of the thing. 
 The absence of all food, or the very sight of it, for an 
 indefinite period, was a heavy ordeal to go through. 
 Feeling that this was the one wholesome thing about 
 the whole transaction, I had little pity for him, but 
 Fred thought good to make himself officiously sym- 
 pathetic. 
 
 " Cheer up, old boy," he said, as he went forward 
 and lifted him from the carriage ; " I'll be there to- 
 day, and see if I don't conjure something out of the 
 cupboards."
 
 IN THE OLD MANOR-HOUSE. 37 
 
 At this threat I grew absolutely pale. Yes, con- 
 stant as was my colour, it deserted me now. 
 
 " Fred !" I cried wildly, " if you play tricks like 
 that, you will be the death of us all." 
 
 A peal of laughter was his esponse, and, in 
 despair, I was about to re-enter the carriage and 
 abandon the visit, when he caught me by the arm. 
 
 "What a goose you are, Nell!" he exclaimed. 
 " Do you think I'd pop into the lion's mouth when 
 I've something else to pop into mine ? There's a 
 stunning cherry-tree in the orchard yonder. I know 
 it of old and mother alv/ays let me have a climb 
 it's there I'll hang out." 
 
 George opened his eyes at the words. Meaningless 
 as they ever were, there was really appeal in them 
 now. 
 
 " Take me !" he murmured. " Oh, Fred, take me S" 
 
 But I seized him resolutely. 
 
 " You little gorger !" I said, " I wonder shame 
 wouldn't shut your mouth. Come with me this in- 
 stant." 
 
 Marshalled sternly in front, I got him along thus ; 
 while I gave a protecting hand to Dick and Lucy 
 on either side. When we were on the doorstep, I 
 heard a whistle from Fred. Turning, I saw him 
 using some pantomimic gestures expressive of a 
 touching farewell and compassionate solicitude for 
 our fate. 
 
 George groaned again, and I had to give him a
 
 38 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 little prod with my parasol to keep him steady in the 
 vanguard. 
 
 The butler, meanwhile, had been unbarring the front 
 door. It was so seldom opened that the process was a 
 tedious one, and we stood awaiting admission a full 
 minute before it was granted. We were ushered at last 
 into the library, the accustomed retreat of Uncle George. 
 The apartment, I need scarcely say, was gloomy. The 
 Hangings were faded, the carpet threadbare, the blinds 
 yellow. In a nook near the fireplace stood a deep 
 leathern chair, dark and dingy in its hue, and in this 
 was sunk the spare wizened form of our host. Books 
 surrounded him, dust likewise. From ceiling to floor 
 the room was crammed with fusty old tomes, and 
 they were ranged further in piles in his vicinity, 
 shutting him off into a sombre solitude. They were 
 indeed almost the sole furniture of the place, and 
 often it was difficult to find seats apiece for his small 
 guests. 
 
 His first act on our entrance was to put on his 
 spectacles, throw himself further back in his chair, 
 and scan us all round. 
 
 " You are Ellen," he said, fixing his piercing little 
 eyes full on my face. 
 
 And then he went along the row, naming each in 
 turn, and emphasizing every identification by a scru- 
 tiny so sharp that it was almost like a stab. Uncle 
 George was twenty years older than my mother, and 
 the disparity in their ages was further increased by
 
 IN THE OLD MANOR-HOUSE. 39 
 
 the very different natures of their minds. Uncle had 
 become worn and ancient beyond his time by the 
 force evidently of a harsh acid spirit ; while, in my 
 mother's case, sweetness and simplicity had kept alive 
 the freshness of an unsullied heart. 
 
 I had been always a little afraid of Uncle George, 
 but somehow I trembled before him now. He had 
 not been told of my mother's departure, and she had 
 directed me to convey the intelligence of it as casually 
 as I could, without naming, if possible, her distant 
 destination. As I stood in hesitation, he signed to 
 me to approach. 
 
 "Come nearer ?" he exclaimed. " What are you all 
 keeping back for ?" 
 
 But scarcely had we made a movement in response 
 than there was as sudden a check. George, heavy 
 and awkward, had stumbled over one of his favourite 
 tomes, a big illustrated " Shakespeare." 
 
 "You little imp !" cried my uncle ; " what are you 
 about ? Can't you keep your feet for a moment ? 
 You all look very odd to-day," was his next remark. 
 " I believe there's something wrong. Where is your 
 mother ?" 
 
 "She has gone away," I murmured; "just for a 
 while, and my father with her. They have left Aunt 
 Rachel with us." 
 
 The mention was unfortunate. He hated Aunt 
 Rachel, and showed it in a scowl. 
 
 " And what does she do ?" he demanded. " Does
 
 40 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 she punish you with a rod as well as her pre- 
 sence ?" 
 
 " That she doesn't !" broke in Dick. " I'd like to 
 see her touch me. She daren't try it on, even with a 
 shake. Her cap wouldn't stand it." 
 
 At this speech a ray passed over the dry counte- 
 nance of Uncle George, and if his books had not been 
 still a formidable barrier, I think he would have given 
 Dick a pat. 
 
 " Sit down," he said then, and made a motion with 
 his arms which referred us to the most distant regions 
 within view. 
 
 His eyes never left our faces all the time, and pre- 
 sently I was put through some cross-questioning 
 which heightened my colour, and raised in a corres- 
 ponding measure uncle's curiosity. 
 
 " And you don't know what your mother is gone 
 away for, Ellen ?" he pursued after prolonged queries. 
 " That's queer. A girl of your age isn't a baby." 
 
 " I am not treated as such," I said, a little warmly. 
 " I am entrusted with the care of all the family now." 
 
 " I thought you said Miss Wynham was ? Little 
 as she's good for, she has not been tacked on as 
 another child to the number, I suppose ?" 
 
 " She is to help, of course/' I stammered. " But I 
 do all the teaching and housekeeping." 
 
 " Enough for you, if you do it well. I won't say 
 you make a poor hand of it, for I dare say it's the very 
 contrary work you're at. Riot and richness are more
 
 IN THE OLD MANOR-HOUSE. 41 
 
 in your line. I never saw you all look worse. George 
 is positively green." 
 
 " That's the gooseberries !" exclaimed Dick. " He's 
 been at them all the morning." 
 
 " And pray, sirrah, what have you been about ?" 
 retorted uncle sharply. " Do you know that your 
 nose is quite black ?" 
 
 Dick instantly put up a hand to feel, and this fatal 
 act accomplished his disfigurement. Whatever state 
 his face might be in, his fingers were rarely to be 
 trusted. I had had him spotless a few moments 
 before, and how he acquired his favourite embellish- 
 ment it would have been difficult to say. Possibly 
 from the mere proximity to dust, he had attracted it 
 magnetically. 
 
 Everything seemed to go wrong now. Lucy's 
 scratches became painfully conspicuous, and my own 
 visage was preternaturally flushed. None of the 
 tokens escaped Uncle George. His eyes were far- 
 seeing as a ferret's, especially when he helped out 
 their power of observation by the addition of his 
 gold-rimmed spectacles. I had been proud of my 
 party, but I could be so no longer. It was evident that 
 a mother's hand was missing from our midst, and that 
 my vaunted management had tumbled down of itself. 
 It was a relief at the same time to find uncle veering 
 from curiosity to correction. The latter was safe 
 ground, most obvious and assured, and involved 
 neither mystery nor evasion. He had wide scope
 
 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 here for prolonged excursions, and he exercised him- 
 self most thoroughly thereon. 
 
 In the midst of some vehement declamation there 
 was a dreadful crash. I looked around me in trepi- 
 dation. Had George tumbled ? What had happened? 
 All seemed the same, but the noise was unmistak- 
 able. 
 
 Uncle's eyes flashed, and turning, he rang violently 
 at the bell. I never saw such agitation in his coun- 
 tenance before. Something more strong than irrita- 
 tion had moved him. It was a dark, terrible wrath. 
 
 " What is this ?" he cried. " Some one is in the 
 house. Who has got in ?" 
 
 I trembled instinctively. Yet surely we were guilt- 
 less. The downfall had been elsewhere, not within 
 the range of our destructiveness at all. Uncle must 
 have believed it too. Yet still his eyes rested on me 
 with piercing scrutiny. I began to feel conscious, if 
 not criminal. A fatal fear had sprung to mind the 
 proximity of my brother Fred. 
 
 The next moment the butler opened the door. 
 
 " Willis," said my uncle ; " give me your arm at 
 once." 
 
 He was going to rise, then. This was a portentous 
 action, only resorted to on memorable occasions. 
 Confirmed gout had for many years rendered him in- 
 capable of independent movement, and his chair in 
 the library was set on wheels, so that he could make 
 the round of his favourite bookshelves as he had need.
 
 IN THE OLD MANOR-HOUSE. 43 
 
 " What has happened ?" I whispered anxiously to 
 Willis, as he raised Uncle George with difficulty. 
 
 The answer was a mere gesture, but it was expres- 
 sive of something dire. He shook his grey head, and 
 seemed to point with his eyes to tragic results. 
 
 Meanwhile there was another startling sound, and 
 a bell rang now, rang wild and loudly through the 
 old house. Little Lucy crept closer to my side, and 
 frightened by the whole proceeding she put up her 
 pretty lip and gave a little cry. 
 
 " What's that ? " broke out uncle passionately. 
 " Don't howl ! Don't dare to let me hear you here !" 
 
 I checked her with a clasp, and she grew subdued 
 in a moment. George was placid as ever, and Dick 
 seemed rather to enjoy the growing excitement. He 
 had taken advantage of it to run his fingers along a 
 margin of enticing dust he had espied, and his eyes 
 glittered with delight. As uncle reached the door- 
 way, he turned, and seemed to relegate us to some 
 state of nonentity. It was evident, at all events, 
 that we were not to follow him. But my interest in 
 the matter was too compelling. Signalling to the 
 children to remain behind, I stole close on his foot- 
 steps. 
 
 The butler, still helping rny uncle, led the way 
 direct to the broad oaken staircase that conducted to 
 the second floor. Strange to say, I had not been in 
 the upper rooms of the Manor-House more than once 
 or twice in my life. When a child, I remembered a
 
 44 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 day of play in the long corridor off which they 
 opened, and I had been allowed a peep into some 
 ancient apartments which had large massive beds, 
 gloomy hangings, and tall oval mirrors set in ebony 
 frames, that reflected a rather awestruck expression 
 on my own face. 
 
 Uncle was a widower, and I knew that his wife had 
 died suddenly in one of these dusky rooms. He had 
 kept the body from burial beyond the accustomed 
 time, and I was always picturing to myself some 
 ghostly scene of sad sombre significance. 
 
 Later on, an incident had occurred which I could 
 never properly fathom or comprehend. My mother, 
 on the occasion of one of our visits to the Manor- 
 House, had been in great agitation and distress. She 
 was closeted with my uncle for a considerable time 
 while we children were packed in waiting in the car- 
 riage outside. When she came back to us, there were 
 tears in her eyes, and it was at this juncture that Fred 
 had been prohibited the house, which he had not re- 
 entered since. 
 
 Willis paused at the staircase now, but uncle mo- 
 tioned angrily to be brought further. 
 
 " Not here !" he said. " The other way the back- 
 flight." 
 
 Thereupon we passed through a green baize door 
 and traversed a narrow passage towards the servants' 
 apartments. Just as we had gained the end, I heard 
 a footstep, a hurried desperate rush, and descried
 
 IN THE OLD MANOR-HOUSE. 45 
 
 some one tumbling, rather than springing, down a 
 steep stairway which faced us. My heart almost 
 stopped its beatings when I saw who it was. 
 
 It was Fred flushed, panting, and with his curly 
 crop of hair in a sort of mad excitement. He 
 caught view of Uncle George, and pulled up on the 
 last step. For an instant he gazed, dazed and irreso- 
 lute. Then, like a stag hunted and harassed, but not 
 yet brought to bay, he turned and fled. Up the old 
 staircase he flew faster even than he had come down, 
 and pursuit at this pace was of course impossible for 
 his uncle. 
 
 But a roar escaped the latter, deep and defiant, and 
 I knew that it breathed a vengeance which was fol- 
 lowing after. Mingled terror and indignation at be- 
 holding Fred on the forbidden ground overcame me 
 wholly now, and I shrank back in dismay. I could 
 not brave anger for one who had betrayed trust, and 
 placed us all in such an equivocal position. I felt 
 that my place was best with the other children, no 
 one could tell to what exploits they might be led in 
 my absence. Even now I thought I caught a cry 
 from Lucy, and in eager haste I darted back to the 
 library.
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 WHAT BECAME OF AUNT RACHEL. 
 
 " It was a fairy summer, 
 
 The plants from dew sprang up ; 
 All things, all thoughts reflected 
 The gold of buttercup." 
 
 I DID not see uncle again. I had gone out with the 
 younger children to settle them in the carriage, think- 
 ing it the safest place for their deposit, when Willis 
 appeared with Fred at his side. 
 
 "You are to go, miss," said the butler ominously. 
 " The master can't admit any one again to-day." 
 
 Fred mounted at once into the rumble. I took my 
 place inside, and not a word was spoken, even after 
 we had driven off. Lucy was the first to break a pro- 
 tracted silence. 
 
 " Ellie," she said, " I'se frightened." 
 
 " Not now, my pet," I rejoined. " Uncle George is 
 not strong, and should not be worried. Fred has 
 acted very wrongly." 
 
 " But what did he do, Ellie ?"
 
 WHA T BECAME OF A UNT RA CHEL. 47 
 
 That I could not answer her yet, as far as par- 
 ticulars were concerned, bat disobedience had certainly 
 entered into the case. And so I intimated, as expla- 
 nation enough of all wrong-doing. I was longing on 
 my own part to question Fred, for curiosity naturally 
 prevailed in my mind as much as annoyance. When 
 we had reached home, and he had descended from his 
 perch, I saw that he looked almost subdued. Sending 
 the children into the house, I asked him to come out 
 with me to the garden. He did not demur, but there 
 was no quickness in his movements, and his eyes 
 were not raised with his usual audacious glance of 
 inquiry. 
 
 " Fred," I began, after a moment's silence, " you 
 have behaved very badly to-day. But I need not 
 tell you that. You must know it yourself." 
 He fired up a little then. 
 
 "I did nothing," he said ; " nothing to be so badgered 
 about. I don't know what kind of house that is, or 
 what sort of old wizard is at the head of it. It's the 
 last time I'll put my foot in it." 
 
 "I hope so. You need not give that out as a 
 menace of your own. It was forbidden to you long 
 ago." 
 
 ' That's all very fine," he exclaimed. " But why 
 should I be made a black sheep of, I'd be glad to 
 know ?" 
 
 As he was getting irritated, I considered it better 
 to leave that matter in abeyance.
 
 48 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 " I know Uncle George is strange and fanciful," I 
 said. " But, Fred, you ought not to irritate him. 
 What was it you did to-day ?" 
 
 " I was only hanging about," he said ; "just watch- 
 ing for you to come out. I saw a side door open, and 
 I thought I'd step in and call to Willis to bring me a 
 tumbler of something to drink. There wasn't a cherry 
 on the old tree, I had got hot climbing, and was as 
 thirsty as could be " 
 
 "Well, Fred?" 
 
 "Well, the passage within didn't lead, as I thought, 
 to the servants' rooms. It took me round by a queer 
 covered way to the foot of a back staircase. When I 
 was so far I looked about me and called to the butler. 
 He didn't answer me, but hearing a footstep some- 
 where, I ran up the flight of steps. At the top there 
 was a door covered in scarlet cloth and studded with 
 big brass nails " 
 
 Fred paused again, and another query had to in- 
 cite him to a conclusion. 
 
 " And you opened it ?" I inquired. 
 
 " Well, yes, I suppose so. That is. I pulled and 
 pushed at it for a minute or two, but it wouldn't yield. 
 All at once it partially gave way, and there was a 
 thundering noise. I was half frightened at first, but 
 then I felt curious and tried to go further. I had seen 
 nothing as yet, for the door was but half open. As I 
 got it fully ajar a wild clanging sound rang out, and I 
 knew that I had touched some cord which had set a
 
 WHAT BECAME OF AUNT RACHEL. 49 
 
 bell in motion. Almost immediately afterwards I 
 heard footsteps, and uncle's voice, and I stood irreso- 
 lute, not knowing whether to go on or come back. 
 In the end I nearly jumped into his arms." 
 
 " But, Fred, you turned and ran up the flight again," 
 I interrupted. " What did you discover then ?" 
 
 " Nothing, Ellie, not a thing ; I give you my word 
 for it. There was only the long oaken corridor before 
 me, leading to the bedrooms. I dashed along it, and 
 came down the front way, by the big staircase. 
 Willis caught me at the foot, and bundled me out at 
 once." 
 
 There was not much in the story to satisfy inquisi- 
 tiveness, but it was all he could tell me ; and, not 
 wishing to have a scene before Aunt Rachel, I passed 
 over his delinquencies lightly. Dick, nevertheless, 
 had a tale ready for her ear ere we could reach the 
 house. I turned off inquiries as well as I could, 
 and George, who had been speechless, of course, 
 was rewarded with an extra lump of sugar at tea- 
 time." 
 
 The next day was that settled for the school - 
 children's feast which we had promised Mr. Locke we 
 would give our countenance to. 
 
 When the morning arrived the weather had changed 
 to excessive warmth, and I determined to keep the 
 children indoors until the afternoon. We were not to 
 set out for Wayland Abbey, the scene of the festivi- 
 ties, till between three and four o'clock, and I decreed 
 
 4
 
 50 MY MO THERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 that lessons were to go on as usual. The novelty of 
 the task had worn off for me by this time, and I must 
 confess that it cost me an effort to set about it. It 
 was the more provoking, therefore, to find that the 
 rest of the party looked upon it as a sort of gala time 
 for me, and felt that they had a right to lessen its 
 triumph by perplexities and perverseness. If they 
 were kept under subjection, they thought, I suppose, 
 that a little wholesome discipline would be good for 
 me too. At all events, they were giddy and tire- 
 some. 
 
 Merylle pounded at the piano in quite a ferocious 
 style. Dick presented me with rows of figures which 
 turned my brain at the first glance, and George, in 
 spite of every precaution, had always surreptitious 
 stores at hand, and an incessant munching went on 
 which drove me almost distracted. In the effort to 
 avoid boxing him on the ears, I had to have recourse 
 to vehemence of another kind, and more than once I 
 brought my own hand down with such force on the 
 table that the latter tottered, and I winced. There 
 was always a laugh then, and I had to bear this as 
 well as the cause of it. 
 
 The heat on the present occasion wrought matters 
 to a warmer pitch than ever. The schoolroom was 
 stifling. Each struggled against restraint in the long- 
 ing to catch a free breath : one and all clamoured for 
 air without exercises. 
 
 But a half holiday had been conceded the day be-
 
 WHAT BECAME OF AUNT RACHEL. 51 
 
 fore ; the results had proved disastrous, and I stood 
 out firmly now. Suddenly I missed George. Merylle 
 had been in tears over her French, the big drops ran 
 copiously adown her roseate face, and her plump cheeks 
 looked so piteous that the aspect was quite comical. 
 Engrossed with the task of subduing her first and 
 soothing her afterwards, I had not kept a clear eye on 
 George. He was generally heavy in his movements, 
 and I did not anticipate a flight from him. Yet 
 gone he was, and leaving the others, with a pre- 
 monitory shake of head and hand at them, I sallied 
 forth in his quest. In the hall I encountered Aunt 
 Rachel. 
 
 " Here's a nice business !" she exclaimed. " George 
 has gone and tumbled into the currant-wine vat. I 
 heard screams, and Eliza has just fetched him out half 
 drowned." 
 
 I was both shocked and solicitous, but that did not 
 satisfy Aunt Rachel. It was plain that in some way 
 she attributed the catastrophe directly to me. 
 
 " You are keeping him too low, Ellen/' she said, 
 " and of course he prowls about then. A child can't 
 be stopped suddenly in his food in this way. I hear 
 you checking him whenever he has a morsel in his 
 mouth." 
 
 I am afraid I gave some hot answer, but the 
 weather alone would have excused it, and aunt might 
 have done the same. A retort, however, on her side 
 was what succeeded, and we were on the verge of dis- 
 
 42
 
 52 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 pute when luckily the first bell rang out for our early 
 dinner. 
 
 We met next over the board, and had each of us 
 toned down meanwhile by the aid of cooling toilet 
 manipulations. George was in his place as usual in a 
 clean pinafore and with his hair well brushed, but de- 
 cidedly lank, and I could scarcely help smiling when 
 I saw him looking as stolid as ever. 
 
 A day of perfect sunshine is rather a rare boon in 
 our tearful climate, and should be prized accordingly. 
 Yet cloudless as it is in nature,' it often finds shades 
 elsewhere. Nothing satisfies some people, and Aunt 
 Rachel, who was rather rubicund, grumbled dreadfully 
 about the oppression. Even when she was settled in 
 the carriage, and we were driving along the avenue 
 beneath an archway of trees, she broke into murmurs. 
 
 " There isn't a breath to be got !" she exclaimed. 
 " I don't know what is to become of us if it goes on in 
 this way. We shall all be stifled." 
 
 " I like it," said Lucy, who had a soft composed 
 skin that never flushed beyond its shell-pink. 
 
 " You like it because you're lazy," retorted aunt. 
 " If you had something to do we should hear another 
 story from you." 
 
 Lucy was rebuked forthwith, and her dark fringe 
 of lashes fell shyly on her cheek. 
 
 I gave her a little pat, but unfortunately in doing 
 so I brushed against Aunt Rachel, who was on the 
 same seat.
 
 WHA T BECAME OF A UNT RA CHEL. 53 
 
 " Keep still, Ellen !" she cried. " Don't crowd 
 up like that ! You want to have me choked, I 
 think." 
 
 When we arrived at the Abbey, we found delicious 
 shade under some spreading lime-trees, and here the 
 school-children were collected. The rector and curate 
 came forward to receive us. 
 
 " You look cool here," exclaimed aunt more ami- 
 ably. " What we have suffered on the road between 
 sun and dust is beyond words." 
 
 " You should have been on the box, aunt," broke 
 in Dick, who had had his perch up there. " You 
 must try it going back I'll let you have my place. 
 It's a jolly high one." 
 
 The generous offer only elicited a frown ; and, in- 
 deed, the picture it called up of Aunt Rachel, puffing 
 and important, seated beside the fat coachman, was 
 one to be sternly repressed. 
 
 Despite the heat, aunt accepted a position pre- 
 sently before a tea-table. She was led up to it in 
 state by the rector, Mr. Horton, and there was a 
 certain dignity about the proceeding which brought 
 balm to bear upon it. 
 
 I for my part was willing to assist, but there were 
 too many matrons on the scene to allow an opening 
 for my services, and thus it came to pass I was left 
 inactive. I caught a glance ever and again from 
 Aunt Rachel's eye, and knew that she viewed me 
 with distrust, and the expression deepened to one of
 
 54 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 displeasure when she found that Mr. Locke had 
 strolled up to me. 
 
 " I must ask you to help us in the games by-and- 
 by, Miss Wynham," he said. " The children are 
 hungry now, but we want to make them happy pre- 
 sently. I don't think feasting alone can lead to that 
 result." 
 
 " No, indeed !" I exclaimed heartily. 
 
 A vision of George's dull, passionless face was 
 before me, and it represented to the full the insuffi- 
 ciency of the " stuffing-system " to extract spirits. 
 
 " This day of amusement is a new event for the 
 children," I remarked. "A Christmas-tree has been 
 thought incentive enough hitherto for their studies." 
 
 " A sufficient lift to the ' Tree of Knowledge ?' " 
 laughed the curate. " For my part," he added, " I 
 not only feel that it is good to be ' merry and wise/ 
 but I think the two qualities must go in combina- 
 tion." 
 
 " That is a delightful opinion, Mr. Locke for the 
 young ones, at least. Would you advise me to adopt 
 it ? I have got a small family under my charge just 
 now, but I thought the more they were kept down 
 the more hope there was of them." 
 
 "That would depend on the mode of 'keeping 
 down.' I should not imagine it was a very severe 
 one in your case." 
 
 " I am afraid good-nature misleads you, Mr. Locke. 
 But I assure you it doesn't blind me, as regards the
 
 WHA T BECAME OF A UNT RA CHEL. 5 5 
 
 faults of others, at all events. I believe I am a hard 
 task-mistress. Ask my brother George, o"r Master 
 Dick." 
 
 Mr. Locke's eyes glanced around in search of the 
 pair, and of course they were discovered at some mis- 
 chief, real or presumptive. Dick was hanging from a 
 tree in an appalling attitude of danger, and George, 
 who had clung close to the bun basket from the first, 
 had each cheek distended to a full-moon circumference. 
 
 "You see their tastes, Mr. Locke," I exclaimed. 
 " One pines for peril, the other for pabulum. Their 
 tendencies are terrible. I can neither endure them, 
 nor eradicate them." 
 
 " And what about my friend Fred ?" inquired the 
 clergyman. " He is no trouble, surely ?" 
 
 " I am glad that is your experience," I returned. 
 " But I regret to say he is not to be trusted either. 
 He teases my aunt indeed all of us. I only wish 
 his tasks were more lengthy and difficult. They 
 might tie him down a little." 
 
 " He is doing very well at present, Miss Wynham. 
 I have no fault to find. His lessons are always care- 
 fully prepared." 
 
 " Then set him something harder. Please do, Mr. 
 Locke !" And I grew quite beseeching in tone and 
 gesture. 
 
 I was brought back to demureness by a sharp call. 
 The voice was Aunt Rachel's, and looking round I 
 saw her beckoning to me imperatively.
 
 56 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 " Ellen ! why are you not helping ?" she exclaimed 
 when I approached. " See how active I am !" And 
 she waved the tea-pot somewhat menacingly in my 
 face. " We did not come here to amuse ourselves. 
 You should remember that." 
 
 " Miss Wynham is going to organise our games for 
 us," interposed Mr. Locke, who had followed in my 
 footsteps. "If she will kindly do this, it will be a 
 real boon. It is easier sometimes to make people 
 work than play." 
 
 " Only when they are shy, Mr. Locke," I exclaimed 
 laughingly. " My experience would scarcely carry 
 out that doctrine. Though, indeed, you are possibly 
 right as regards orderly games. The play, I mean, is 
 a species of wild destructiveness. That they all take 
 to instinctively." 
 
 I said this with an air of wisdom and superiority 
 which might have passed muster but for the presence 
 of Aunt Rachel. She determined to reduce me at once 
 to the same level as the untutored tribe I referred to. 
 
 " You should show them a good example, Ellen," she 
 said, "and then more might be looked for. I ex- 
 pected to have found you all helping now, but instead 
 of that every one is scattered, and thinking only of 
 amusement. There was plenty to do, if you would 
 have done it ;" and again she seized the tea-pot ex- 
 citedly. It was as well she had nearly exhausted the 
 contents, or I should infallibly have had a dash of 
 them by way of demonstration.
 
 WHAT BECAME OF AUNT RACHEL. 57 
 
 Discussion was ended now by a motion on the 
 rector's part. He had risen to say grace, and as the 
 feasting came to an end with this, Aunt Rachel could 
 scarcely prolong her demands upon me. 
 
 A short distance from the scene of the recent re- 
 past there was a beautiful slope of velvet turf with a 
 fringe of evergreens around, and thither we repaired 
 for the continuation of the entertainment. 
 
 Races, Friar's ground, the magic circle, all followed 
 one another in merry succession, and the school- 
 children, after the first start, enjoyed themselves un- 
 restrainedly. In the midst of my attentions to them 
 I was kept in perpetual dread of my own flock. Dick's 
 activity was terrible. He was only happy when he 
 had some one linked in an iron grasp, and was dash- 
 ing at mad pace adown the incline. If there was not 
 a fall at the bottom he looked upon the whole thing 
 as a failure, and was off for another trial. 
 
 The turf being soft I did not view the proceeding 
 as fatal, but all at once I was startled by a cry. It 
 came from one of the little girls of the party, a deli- 
 cate, pretty child of about eight years old. Dick had 
 treated her as summarily as the rest, had given her a 
 sudden swing as they gained the bottom, and she fell 
 with force, one of her feet being doubled under her. 
 
 I rushed to lift her, but found that some agonising 
 strain had rendered her incapable of motion. She 
 moaned when I touched her, and the schoolmistress, 
 who had come quickly forward to assist, had difficulty
 
 58 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 in raising her even in her arms. It was plain that no 
 relief could be given by us, and that she must at once 
 receive some surgical attention. Fortunately our car- 
 riage stood ready for departure, and I begged that 
 she might be lifted into it and driven to the doctor. 
 The mistress offered to accompany her, and the child 
 indeed would go with no one else. I was so pained 
 and distressed at the whole occurrence that I was only 
 anxious to do anything in my power that could atone 
 in a measure for Dick's giddiness. 
 
 It did not strike me for a moment that aunt could 
 have any objection to the course. But it appeared 
 she wished to get home now ; the party was breaking 
 up, and she grew suddenly impatient. The carriage 
 could not be expected back within an hour's time, 
 and the rector had to come to our rescue in an offer 
 of seats. He managed to pack the children in some- 
 where amongst the others, Fred set off walking, 
 and room was made for Aunt Rachel in the rector's 
 wagonette. I was the only one left, so to speak, 
 in the lurch. But it was merely for a moment. A 
 tiny dog-cart of Mr. Locke's made its appearance 
 presently, and I was courteously proffered a seat here. 
 I accepted with thanks, and mounted into position 
 beside the gentleman. He seemed to have rather a 
 spirited steed, but that gave me no concern, as I was 
 free from fear, and rather enjoyed what is termed a 
 dashing drive. We were all starting fairly when I 
 heard a call. Aunt Rachel, who had been engaged in
 
 WHA T BECAME OF A UNT RA CHEL. 59 
 
 the process of muffling herself in a dust-cloak, had 
 only just espied the last arrangement. It gave her a 
 shake which unsteadied us all. In a second she had 
 popped out of the wagonette, and was in chase of our 
 vehicle. 
 
 " Stop, Ellen," she cried ; " stop, Mr. Locke ! I will 
 go with you !" 
 
 There was a small seat in fact at the back, to which 
 she mounted with bewildering alacrity. I would have 
 yielded up mine in front, but the pony was frisky, 
 and it was thought wiser to have no further changes. 
 
 Mr. Horton had followed her and settled a rug over 
 her knees, and she professed herself quite comfortable. 
 She had the grace to apologise to the gentleman for 
 her sudden desertion, which she said had been induced 
 by a fear of overcrowding him. 
 
 " I did not know there was another mode of con- 
 veyance," she added. " This will do admirably." 
 
 The too-radiant sunlight had become subdued now. 
 A soft mellow haze enwrapt the dreamy landscape, and 
 as far as the eye could reach there was nothing but a 
 slumbrous quietude. All seemed sinking into that 
 dewy cradle for rest and refreshment whence an 
 awakening comes in the joy of morning. The change 
 worked sympathetically on our minds as well. In- 
 stinctively, we subsided into silence, and we drove on 
 some distance before almost a word was exchanged. 
 I was the first to break a pause. 
 
 " I hope the accident to little Ruth may not sig-
 
 60 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 nify ?" I said to Mr. Locke. " All had gone on so 
 pleasantly until then ; it was most unfortunate it 
 should have happened. I warned you about our boys. 
 It was wrong of me to allow them to take any active 
 part in the proceedings." 
 
 "You must not blame yourself, Miss Wynham," he 
 returned kindly. " With every precaution and con- 
 sideration, accidents will occur. Your little brother 
 has been crying almost ever since. It won't do to be 
 too hard upon him." 
 
 " There would be no fear of that if the punishment 
 were left with you," I replied. " You seem wonder- 
 fully forbearing. I should be only too glad to be the 
 same, if government could go along with leniency. 
 You are clever, and I dare say can accomplish the 
 combination. I am not so." 
 
 " How can you tell I am clever ?" he questioned 
 smilingly. " You are giving me credit for too much 
 ability and amiability both. I have had little ex- 
 perience in the direction of young people as yet, and 
 it remains to be proved if I possess either quality." 
 
 " But you manage Fred, Mr. Locke." 
 
 " I manage to instruct him, you mean. He is too 
 far advanced in boyhood not to be amenable for the 
 few hours he is with me." 
 
 " Ellen," said Aunt Rachel suddenly from behind, 
 " what are you talking about ?" 
 
 She was a little deaf, and I bent my head towards 
 her reassuringly.
 
 WHAT BECAME OF AUNT RACHEL. 61 
 
 " I have been asking about Ruth, the little girl who 
 'was hurt." 
 
 " We have arrived at children in general now," 
 added Mr. Locke. 
 
 Aunt seemed satisfied from this report that the 
 conversation must be supremely uninteresting, and she 
 left us confidently on such a safe track. The drowsi- 
 ness in the air affected her, I think, and she relapsed 
 into silence. The curate and I had passed gradually 
 into other topics of conversation, when the pony 
 gave a little bound. The rumbling of a cart had 
 frightened it, and it quickened its pace for some 
 distance. 
 
 " You were not startled, I hope ?" said Mr. Locke, 
 when he drew rein again. 
 
 " Oh no," I replied ; " I like fast driving." 
 
 We were near home now, just at the gateway of 
 Crystal Lodge. The dusk had come on, and I looked 
 round with som,e remark to Aunt Rachel. A cry 
 broke from my lips as I did so. The seat was empty. 
 Not a vestige of anything was left rug, cloak, occu- 
 pant, all had disappeared. 
 
 "Oh, Mr. Locke!" I exclaimed; "what have we 
 done? What has become of her? Aunt Rachel is gone!" 
 
 " Gone !" he ejaculated ; " it can't be possible!" and 
 his face took a look of puzzled concern. 
 
 "Yes, yes; but it is so/' I pursued distractedly. 
 " Don't you see for yourself ? What are we to do ? 
 Where can she be ?"
 
 62 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 We had turned round already, but the long road 
 that faced us seemed blank and silent. With Aunt 
 Rachel's form on it, it could not have worn that 
 aspect. Safe or suffering, her presence would infallibly 
 have been made known. 
 
 " When did she go ?" asked my companion 
 anxiously. 
 
 " How can I tell ?" I broke out. " Do you think I 
 knew, Mr. Locke ? Oh, do do something ! We must 
 get her." 
 
 Thereupon we dashed along at an even faster 
 pace than at the runaway moment, and it was with 
 difficulty I could cling on in my own position now. 
 Ever and again I thought I heard a call somewhere, 
 and half turned in my seat, expecting to see Aunt 
 Rachel back as mysteriously 'as she had vanished. 
 That she should have gone so silently was alarming 
 in itself. There was something too unnatural about a 
 disappearance like this. 
 
 My eyes, strained to intent watchfulness, were mis- 
 led each instant by any semblance of a form. The 
 very trees by the roadway took her aspect in the 
 gathering gloom, and seemed beckoning and gesticu- 
 lating to us. In the midst of its tragic element 
 something comic stole into the situation. My re- 
 peated exclamations, " There she is ! there she is !" 
 when nothing but a milestone or bramble-bush was 
 within sight, almost brought a smile to my com- 
 panion's face. He was startled and solicitous all the
 
 WHAT BECAME OF AUNT RACHEL. 63 
 
 same, and seemed, like myself, to stand equally in 
 dread of the discovery or non-discovery of the lady. 
 
 Wherever she was, it was certain she was indignant, 
 if not injured ; and though company, equipage, seat, 
 and all had been her own choice, still it appeared to 
 our apprehensive minds that we must be to blame. 
 
 At last we came to a standstill. There was some- 
 thing like a cloud by the roadside, as if a floating fold 
 of the soft bluish canopy overhead had rolled down 
 unawares. But this cloud rose into distinct dimen- 
 sions as we stopped, and we saw that it was Aunt 
 Rachel. Her grey cloak was still loosely around her, 
 but it had not guarded the rest of her person from a 
 regular bath in the powdery surface of the road. She 
 was dust from head to foot, and there was no occasion 
 to ask if she were hurt, seeing that the protecting 
 substance had fully enveloped her, and shrouded her 
 from any harder contact. 
 
 She was too choked to speak ; but she signalled to 
 us with a motion which brought a cloud into our own 
 throats. 
 
 I sprang down instantly, helped her to mount into 
 the front seat, and then took the perilous perch behind 
 myself. The action propitiated her, I think, for her 
 first words were less alarming than I had expected. 
 
 " How did it happen ?" she murmured. " Why did 
 you leave me ?" 
 
 " But we didn't, Aunt Rachel," I said. " You left 
 us. We have been in such a fright about you."
 
 64 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 Mr. Locke confirmed the soothing statement, and 
 in his presence she restrained herself from reproaches. 
 
 We kept to a more steady pace now, and the gen- 
 tleman gave her his sole attention for the rest of the 
 drive. This put her into good-humour, and when we 
 reached home a vigorous brushing did away with the 
 most dire effects of this last accident of the day.
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 THE GOLDEN SCEPTRE. 
 
 " Dare to be true, nothing can need a lie ; 
 A fault which needs it most grows two thereby." 
 
 GEO. HERBERT. 
 
 ANOTHER week passed over, and we were daily ex- 
 pecting a letter from my mother. It was possible to 
 have news of her and my father now, announcing 
 their arrival in New York, and my anxiety grew pain- 
 fully great. Longing and loneliness had visited me 
 of late, and I often awoke in the night with a sense 
 of desolateness which the deep, dark silence around 
 was not calculated to dissipate. The blank left in 
 the house by the absence of both parents nothing 
 could fill up. In occupation or recreation it made 
 itself equally felt, and the touch of time, which brushes 
 the starting tears from most sorrows, only deepened 
 their source here. All the interest attached to the 
 offices of housekeeper or schoolmistress had quickly 
 evaporated. I had seized upon them too eagerly, and 
 
 5
 
 66 My MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 exhausted their novelty ; and, having failed in many 
 things, the accompaniments of pride and confidence 
 were gone too. Still I tried to set about my tasks 
 regularly, and to let the consciousness of duty ful- 
 filled take the place of pleasure. But it was like a 
 change from soft summer airs to the ice of winter, 
 and had a correspondingly chilling effect. 
 
 " Ellen," said Aunt Rachel one morning, " you are 
 getting quite dull. Is there anything wrong ?" 
 
 " There has been no letter from mother," I mur- 
 mured, half averting my head. " I thought .... I 
 was sure we could have heard before this. The time 
 seems so long." 
 
 " You must not grow impatient," was the soothing 
 reply. " Keep yourself busy as I do. Look better 
 after the servants and children, and the hours won't 
 hang on hand." 
 
 I saw there was little sympathy to be expected 
 here, and determined to make no claim to it. As 
 aunt's labours lay chiefly in the line of herself and 
 her pug, I scarcely felt called upon to profit by her 
 example ; but there was no use in explaining this to 
 her. 
 
 Fred was giving me some concern just now, and I 
 turned my thoughts to him. I had had a suspicion 
 that some plan verging on forbidden ground had been 
 concocting in his mind, and this notion rose into cer- 
 tainty when I found an astonishing change come over 
 him. He had grown quiet, positively harmless; and,
 
 THE GOLDEN SCEPTRE. 67 
 
 much as I objected to his freaks, this state had its 
 disquietudes too. What he meant by it, what he ex- 
 pected to gain by it, were questions which I pondered 
 on in vain. It could not be without a motive, for his 
 health was unshaken, his spirit unbroken still. I 
 could see ever and again the same mischievous gleam 
 in his eye, subdued only by prudential resolve, and I 
 felt that he was ready, on peculiar provocation, to 
 break through the enforced control he had set over 
 himself. 
 
 He went regularly to his studies with Mr. Locke, 
 and that gentleman, on the occasion of a visit he paid 
 us, spoke in the highest terms of the steadiness and 
 studiousness of his pupil. The symptoms were 
 getting alarming, and I was watchful accordingly. 
 On this very morning, when I was depressed by the 
 absence of news from my mother, he came back from 
 Mr. Locke's, tossing his cap in the air, and giving 
 vent to a " hurrah !" which was decidedly distracting. 
 He had burst into the schoolroom, and the children 
 were unstrung at once. 
 
 Dick let his slate drop with a crash, Merylle spun 
 round on the piano-stool, her scattered music flying 
 after her ; and George's mouth fell open till I 
 thought some mysterious nutriment must inevitably 
 be espied." 
 
 " Now, Fred, what is it ?" I exclaimed. " Don't in- 
 terrupt us for nothing." 
 
 " Don't you look so cross, Nell," was his pleasing 
 
 52
 
 68 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 rejoinder. " Mr. Locke's worth ten of you. He knows 
 what's good for a fellow." 
 
 " I wish you would stay with him then," I said. 
 " You are out before your time to-day." 
 
 " You are out there, Miss Nell," he interposed, re- 
 ferring to his silver watch. " It's only that I ran 
 home quicker than usual." 
 
 " And why did you do that ? We can always bear 
 to await your arrival with patience." 
 
 " I dare say. But you see I must think of myself 
 as well as of you. I have something to look to now 
 in preparation for to-morrow." 
 
 " To-morrow ! What is to happen then ?" 
 " I am to have a whole holiday." 
 " For what ?" I asked. 
 
 " Why, to go to the races at S ," and he named 
 
 a neighbouring market-town. 
 
 "And pray who has allowed that ?" I exclaimed. 
 " Mr. Locke may give a holiday, but not determine 
 how you are to spend it." 
 
 "Aunt Rachel has allowed it," he said triumphantly, 
 " Now, what have you got to say ?" 
 
 "That you are acting very badly," I pursued ex- 
 citedly. "You have been cunning and secret from 
 the first. You never told me." 
 
 I was jealous of my authority, and really angry 
 that it should have been passed over so completely by 
 every one. Had I been consulted I might have felt 
 differently. These races were not of a very formid-
 
 THE GOLDEN SCEPTRE. 69 
 
 able kind, involving exceptional risks and temptations. 
 They were promoted by some officers stationed in the 
 town, and were quite of an amateur character, winding 
 up with contests on foot. Still I was doubtful that 
 my father would have approved of them for Fred, 
 unless he went with some good and steady com- 
 panion. 
 
 I was surprised at the part the curate had taken in 
 the transaction, and could scarcely understand it. It 
 appeared, from Fred's account, that he had seen my 
 aunt in the village that morning, and had made the 
 request of her in person. To me he had said nothing, 
 though I had met him only the day before, and he 
 knew that I was set in a kind of guardianship over the 
 younger ones. Fred allowed that he had mentioned 
 his desire for this indulgence to his tutor some time 
 ago. Thus it was all the stranger that I should have 
 been ignored in the consultations. 
 
 My annoyance grew greater every moment, and I 
 declared positively that Fred should not go, and that 
 I would get Aunt Rachel to issue her prohibition 
 also. Just as I had worked myself into this state of 
 passionate resolve there was a ring at the hall-door. 
 Fred made a bound to the window, and his face 
 changed expression suddenly. 
 
 " It is Mr. Locke !" he exclaimed. " What is he 
 coming for ?" 
 
 I noticed that he did not run forward, as was his 
 custom, to admit him ; but, annoyed as I was with
 
 70 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 the gentleman myself, I could pass over the omission. 
 I did not intend to honour him with my presence, 
 but Aunt Rachel was in the garden, so I was obliged 
 to go in. He looked so pleasant when I entered the 
 drawing-room and came forward to me with such a 
 genial smile, that I was constrained to be gracious 
 perforce. 
 
 " You must forgive me for intruding so early," he 
 said ; " and still more I must ask your pardon for 
 what I am about to say. I dare say I have no right 
 to interfere, but it is only in the absence of your 
 father that I venture to do so. Do you think it well, 
 Miss Wynham, that your brother should go alone to 
 
 these races at S ? If he were joining a party of 
 
 friends it might be different ; but " 
 
 I could not help interrupting him with abrupt- 
 ness. 
 
 " You surprise me, Mr. Locke," I said. " Have 
 you not only given him a holiday for the occasion, 
 but even asked Aunt Rachel to grant the indul- 
 gence ?" 
 
 The curate started slightly, and for a second he did 
 not answer me. 
 
 "Well, yes it is true," he pursued. "But you 
 know there was a reason for this." 
 
 " No," I returned. " On the contrary, I am quite 
 unaware that there was any." 
 
 His eyes met mine inquiringly. 
 
 " Was it not your wish ?" he said. " I fully under-
 
 THE GOLDEN SCEPTRE. 71 
 
 stood that this day's recreation was long promised to 
 him, and that no obstacle stood in the way but a pos- 
 sible objection from your aunt. Fred has been so 
 good and attentive with me, I did not like to refuse 
 I know that it is not well to be too strict with young 
 people. But on considering the matter over, since he 
 left me this morning, I came to the conclusion that 
 the amusement was a hazardous one, and that, as it 
 was a new one in his case, it should be only sanctioned 
 in the first instance by his father." 
 
 " Where is Fred ?" I broke out impulsively. " I 
 must see him at once. He must explain this himself. 
 I never heard one word of his wishes or intentions 
 till a few moments ago. You can understand from 
 this how little I have had to say to the business, Mr. 
 Locke." 
 
 I left the room even as I spoke, and found Fred 
 lurking in the hall without. When I brought him in, 
 his eyes fell before the tutor's, and the colour mounted 
 into his brow. Yet it was very gently that Mr. Locke 
 spoke to him. But Fred's own conscience was the 
 accuser, and it is the hardest to meet of all. A few 
 questions elicited from him the admission that he had 
 coloured matters to suit his own views, and though 
 Mr. Locke listened patiently his countenance showed 
 a very grave concern. 
 
 " I am sorry for this," he said, " more than I can 
 express to you, Fred. I did not think you would 
 have wished to tell me an untruth."
 
 72 MY MO THERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 Fred bridled at the words. 
 
 "I did not do that," he broke out boldly. "You 
 should not say so, sir." 
 
 " What have I said ?" was the calm rejoinder. " I 
 have merely spoken of what you wished to do. Your 
 lips could not follow actually upon your desires. But 
 there is only a habit of speech here which I should 
 be sorry to do away with. At the same time, can you 
 see any clear distinction between conveying a wrong 
 impression, intending it to be accepted as a true one, 
 and the utterance of incorrect words ? There is the 
 same motive, wish, and will at work in both cases. 
 Truth must be in the ' inward parts,' its influence so 
 strong that the very countenance expresses it. It 
 cannot change colour like the chameleon, and adapt 
 itself to the varying lights of our own fancy. You 
 make a grievous mistake if you think you have kept 
 to it unflinchingly when you have gained your aim by 
 misrepresentation." 
 
 Fred was silent, and his glance was no longer up- 
 raised. 
 
 " My dear boy," pursued Mr. Locke, " I can make 
 allowance for the impulsiveness of youth ; and if this 
 had not been a long-cherished plan of yours, I should 
 not say so much upon the subject. But your sister 
 here is very kind and good to you ; you should not 
 have sought to set her judgment aside, and gain your 
 wishes by a subterfuge." 
 
 " It does not matter about me," I interposed. " The
 
 THE GOLDEN SCEPTRE. 73 
 
 point is, would my father have consented ? Fred 
 should think of that in the first instance." 
 
 " I dare say he would," muttered Fred somewhat 
 defiantly. " He's not so hard as you make out." 
 
 The words and tone were equally aggravating, and 
 I might have been led to some retort but for Mr. 
 Locke's interposition. 
 
 He smoothed down matters with a prompt kind- 
 ness, and before he took his leave he arranged that 
 the holiday should still be granted, and that Fred 
 should join him on a fishing excursion in the after- 
 noon. 
 
 The next morning brought the expected letter 
 from my mother. She wrote in good spirits. They 
 had had a fine voyage, had arrived safely in New 
 York, and hoped to return to us as soon as they pos- 
 sibly could. The very thoughts of this event brought 
 a rush of joy to my heart. I jumped from my seat, 
 and ran round the breakfast-table, giving each of the 
 young ones an impulsive kiss of delight. 
 
 The action was ill-advised. Merylle had treacle on 
 her plate, and was round and sticky as a lollypop ; 
 Dick's mug of cocoa shook hazardously ; and George, 
 arrested in the act of carrying a fresh slice of bread 
 and butter to his mouth, absolutely whined. 
 
 " You are all the most dreadful set of children !" I 
 exclaimed, returning somewhat brusquely to my seat. 
 " Not one of you can be touched in safety. You are 
 fond of nothing and no one but food. Disturb you
 
 74 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 in that, and everything goes wrong. I don't believe 
 you care an atom whether your father and mother are 
 safe on the other side of the ocean or not." 
 
 " I shall care when they are safe on this side of it," 
 said Dick sententiously. 
 
 " I doubt it, if breakfast conies in the way," I re- 
 torted, " though I must say you are better than 
 George. You upset your mug at an interruption, but 
 you are not upset yourself." 
 
 This remark, bordering on reproach, brought out a 
 louder howl from George. My mother always de- 
 clared he was very sensitive, but as I had failed to 
 discover the tendency hitherto, I could scarcely be 
 blamed for inconsiderateness. 
 
 " Do stop that child," interposed Aunt Rachel 
 angrily. " Have you taken his bread from him again, 
 Ellen ?" 
 
 "Not she," said Merylle. "Just look at his plate, 
 aunt, and you needn't ask !" 
 
 It was piled indeed to an amazing height, despite 
 of the demolition of three pieces already. 
 
 "Then what is he crying for ?" pursued aunt. " I 
 never knew him mind anything before, if he had his 
 full allowance." 
 
 " Ellie has hurt his feelings," said Fred. 
 
 " But if he has none to hurt, how can you make 
 that out, Fred ?" put in Merylle. 
 
 I, for my part, ignored the whole conversation, 
 and gave myself up to the business of opening another
 
 THE GOLDEN SCEPTRE. 
 
 letter which awaited perusal. It was from Uncle 
 George. I knew his crabbed handwriting, and the 
 contents, of course., ran in the same vein. He wanted 
 to see me, but I was to bring none of the children. 
 I was to go to him alone, and at once that very day 
 and be with him precisely at four o'clock. 
 
 Compliance with this request, or mandate rather, 
 naturally upset some prior arrangements. I was to 
 have taken the younger ones to a pretty wood to 
 gather wild flowers, and to have indulged them with 
 a picnic repast while Fred fished in a neighbouring 
 trout-stream with his tutor. 
 
 The disappointment caused by the change in my 
 plans showed itself in moodiness or unruliness, and 
 the morning passed disquietingly. Fred, on his part, 
 had a vexation to bear, too. 
 
 About twelve o'clock a letter arrived from Mr. 
 Locke stating that he had been summoned unex- 
 pectedly to visit a sick patient in a distant part of the 
 parish, and that as this call had interrupted his other 
 work, he must defer the intended recreation to a less 
 occupied day. My brother, like most impulsive lads, 
 was irritable if thwarted, and the double frustration of 
 his hopes of amusement on this occasion brought his 
 temper more conspicuously forward. He muttered 
 something in a very angry tone, and then set out for 
 a ramble by himself. It turned out to be a prolonged 
 one, for he was not in to dinner. 
 
 Punctually at three o'clock I started on the drive to
 
 76 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 Uncle George's. Until I was on the way I had not 
 
 thought of the races at S , or that uncle's house 
 
 lay exactly in their direction, at the very end of tin 
 town where they were to be held. Still, it was not 
 likely I should meet with any difficulty, and having 
 no fears about accidents with horses, or runaway trips 
 on their part, I went on confidently. 
 
 There were crowds of carriages in the vicinity when 
 we arrived. Their occupants had, for the most part, 
 already left them, and proceeded on foot to a railed-in 
 enclosure within an adjacent field, and from this I 
 could hear great shouting and cheering as we drew 
 near. Yet uncle's house, with its barricade of wood- 
 work and evergreens, looked silent and secluded as 
 ever. 
 
 When I alighted and rang at the bell, the wire 
 might have been charged with an electric current, so 
 sudden a thrill ran through me at the moment, seem- 
 ing to pass inwards to the strange old house. 
 
 Willis answered the summons more promptly than 
 usual, but his face wore a very ominous expression ; 
 and when I asked if uncle were well, he threw up his 
 hands and eyes in a most unnerving manner. 
 
 " Cannot you speak, Willis ?" I said. " Is there 
 anything wrong ?" 
 
 " Master is waiting for you, miss," was his only 
 reply, and stalking solemnly before me he led the way 
 direct to the library. 
 
 Uncle was out of his chair when I entered, and that
 
 THE GOLDEN SCEPTRE. 77 
 
 posture in itself was alarming. He was grasping one 
 of the ledges of his book-stands, midway down the 
 room, and supporting himself on the other side with 
 his stick. His gaze bent on me at once, and his eyes 
 seemed literally to pierce through me. I wondered 
 what was astray, what was amiss, for he was not 
 utterly unreasonable, and he had never greeted me in 
 this way before. 
 
 " Willis, bring me over to the window," he said 
 abruptly. 
 
 There was a cushioned seat here, and the sash was 
 thrown up, which, though an innovation in the room, 
 was not an unwelcome one. 
 
 Uncle, indeed, seemed stifling. Emotion, if not 
 passion, had wholly mastered him, and even when he 
 was settled in his chair, and I had been pointed to a 
 seat, he did not speak for a full minute. 
 
 I was too much in awe of him to open the conver- 
 sation, and I only gazed out silently through the 
 window upon the old-fashioned garden without, where 
 the sweet scent of picotees and gillyflowers arose from 
 high box-bordered beds. Rose-bushes were beyond, 
 in their full and fragrant June beauty, the soft cheek 
 of one flushing blossom falling caressingly against 
 another. 
 
 The day was perfect, the sunlight golden, but 
 chastened by a sort of slumbrous ecstasy. All lay 
 under a tender mist of happiness. There are times 
 when a smile seems to steal direct from heaven upon
 
 78 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 earth, and nature, at least, throbs in response then, 
 and gives back a glowing glance of gratitude. 
 
 The change from this prospect to my uncle's face 
 was sad and startling. Nothing seemed to move him 
 any longer in the fair world without, so wholly had 
 some dark trouble within his heart shut out the in- 
 fluences of love and loveliness. He was built up in 
 a solitude which no joy broke in upon; only the 
 force of anger, as in the present instance, disturbed 
 the stern barriers which he had set around himself. 
 Suddenly he spoke to me. 
 
 " Ellen," he said, " I sent for you to-day to ask 
 about your mother, to know when she is coming back ; 
 but I don't want to hear of her now. It would be 
 better perhaps if she never returned ; aye, never saw 
 one of you again !" 
 
 The terrible words brought a cry to my lips. 
 
 " Uncle, uncle, don't say that !" I ejaculated. 
 " What can you mean ? What have we done ?" 
 
 " All that you could everything that is possible to 
 bring wrath and woe upon your house. Do you know 
 that your mother gave me her solemn promise that no 
 son of hers should ever frequent a race ? and at this 
 very moment her eldest boy, the one to be most 
 guarded of all mad, reckless being that he is aye, 
 your brother Frederick, is in the midst of a betting-ring 
 yonder, cheering and drinking with the worst of them." 
 
 I sprang from my seat, and an exclamation of 
 dismay escaped me.
 
 THE GOLDEN SCEPTRE. 79 
 
 " Oh no, uncle !" I murmured, " don't say it ! This 
 was forbidden him he would never go. It can't be 
 true." 
 
 My agitation was so genuine that I believe he 
 almost pitied me. 
 
 " It is quite true, Ellen," he reiterated ; but his 
 eyes had less of their piercing sternness. " It is per- 
 fectly unquestionable. Willis saw him." 
 
 Disregarding all my customary reserve and re- 
 straint, I ran out to call the butler. 
 
 He looked to me like a bird of ill-omen when he 
 appeared in the passage. Blacker, thinner, more 
 faven-like than ever, there was nothing to reassure in 
 his countenance. 
 
 " He's there, Miss Ellen," he said, as I questioned 
 him eagerly. " It's hisself is in it, an' not a doubt of 
 it. D'ye think I could misknow his face, not to speak 
 of his voice ? It was upraised enough not to let one 
 overlook it. He was shouting at the very top of it." 
 
 I had heard enough. 
 
 "That will do," I exclaimed. "You might have 
 told me, Willis, and I should have been grateful to 
 you for doing so. But why need you have acquainted 
 my uncle ?" 
 
 " He asked hisself he did indeed, miss. He wanted 
 to know if there were any of yours there, and I daren't 
 never but speak the truth out. He'd soon pounce 
 down upon me if I didn't. He can guess a thing 
 quicker by your eye than another from your "words."
 
 8o MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 If this was the case I had nothing to say, and I 
 returned tremblingly to my uncle. 
 
 " May I send Willis for my brother ?" I asked. " I 
 must have him. He must come back with me at 
 once." 
 
 " No !" he thundered. " I will have no one from 
 my house going into that place." 
 
 " But Willis must have been there already," I ven- 
 tured. 
 
 " He was not. Only on the road by the gateway, 
 but he saw him from there. There were people 
 wanted to have their carriages let into the yard, but I 
 soon forbid that, and sent him out to tell them so." 
 
 Full of restless pain and agitation, I could not 
 speak until I had formed a plan in my own mind, 
 and then I rose hastily to take leave. 
 
 " No good will come of this day," was my uncle's 
 farewell. " I wonder your parents would leave you 
 like this not one with sense among you. They 
 should have put a hard governess at your head." 
 
 I remembered their plans and anxieties, and with 
 what assurance I had repressed them, and there was 
 a faint sinking at my heart. If anything disastrous 
 should occur, could I ever forgive myself? I 
 hastened forth as the thought rushed on me, and 
 discarding the slow attendance of the butler I gained 
 the gateway alone. I took the reins instantly from 
 the coachman. 
 
 " Go in there, Thomas," I exclaimed, " and bring
 
 THE GOLDEN SCEPTRE. Si 
 
 Master Frederick out to me at once. Tell him I am 
 here and waiting for him." And I pointed to the 
 entrance to the broad enclosure where the races were 
 going on. 
 
 " You can't hold the horses, miss," returned the 
 man. "They start every instant at the cheering 
 yonder." 
 
 But I was not to be deterred by a risk of this kind, 
 in fact it never presented itself to me as danger, and 
 merely gathering up the reins in my hand, I stood by 
 the roadside patting the horses. They knew my 
 voice, and when I spoke to them encouragingly they 
 grew gentle and steadied. Ever and again they 
 would prick up their ears, but proceeded to no further 
 action of alarm, and it was quite another kind of 
 anxiety than care for their movements which occu- 
 pied me during the moments of waiting. 
 
 At last Thomas returned, but alone. 
 
 " Where is he ?" I broke out. " Where is Master 
 Frederick ? Why have you not brought him with 
 you ?" 
 
 " He is coming, miss," said the coachman. " But 
 he sent me on first. He was that angry I daren't 
 wait." 
 
 Angry ! Was that his part ? I thought to myself, 
 and it made me more indignant with him than ever. 
 
 He appeared after an interim, looking half-defiant, 
 half-ashamed, and, as he mounted on the box beside 
 Thomas, I had no opportunity of speaking to him on 
 
 6
 
 82 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 the drive back. This was unfortunate in one way. I 
 could have said a great deal, and perhaps in an effec- 
 tive manner, if I had been able to give expression to 
 my feelings at once. Impulsiveness has a force at 
 times which leads to heart- spoken utterance, and this, 
 after all, is the surest weapon of reproach. Cold, 
 cutting words only avail at rare moments, and in the 
 case of peculiar constitutions, to effect the desired 
 end. As regarded a boy like Fred, whose nature was 
 still warm, and open to the sway of affection, they 
 might rather have an injurious result. Yet these were 
 what I indulged in later. And afterwards I relapsed 
 into a silence which I determined I would not break 
 till he had been thoroughly subdued and punished. 
 I went so far also as to set Aunt Rachel in antagon- 
 ism against him. 
 
 This step was not hard to accomplish, and for 
 some days she and I left him in a sort of quarantine, 
 holding no communication with him. The children 
 readily took up their tone from us, and though they 
 had learned none of the particulars of what had 
 happened, one and all viewed him suspiciously, as- 
 suming an air of superiority and goodness which 
 must have been more galling than anything. He on 
 his part said nothing. 
 
 More than once I thought him sorry, and he crept 
 up to me as if he were about to address me, while I 
 caught a whispered " Nell !" on his lips. But I turned 
 away unheeding at such moments. I had determined
 
 THE GOLDEN SCEPTRE. 83 
 
 in my mind that the longer he was left to suffer the 
 better, and that it would be wrong for me to show 
 softness or forgiveness till his expiation was com- 
 plete. 
 
 The weather changed just at this time, and it 
 rained so constantly for a couple of days that we 
 could scarcely get out. Then a less sorrowful morn- 
 ing dawned. The skies had still a veil over them, 
 but the rain had ceased, and in the afternoon I went 
 out to do a little gardening in the front of the house. 
 
 I was bending over a flower-bed which showed a 
 fairy crop of tiny green weeds on the surface, brought 
 up by the recent showers, when my name was called. 
 Looking hastily up, I saw Mr. Locke beside me. 
 
 " Don't stop your work, please," he exclaimed. 
 "You are getting on so deftly and rapidly, it is a 
 lesson to watch you. If you will allow me, I will 
 stay and talk to you here for a moment." 
 
 I could scarcely refuse, especially as he pursued 
 with only a slight pause : 
 
 " It is about your brother Fred, Miss Wynham, that 
 I have been wishing to say a few words to you. He 
 has told me all that passed, but he is really sorry for 
 it. Will you not forgive him now ?" 
 
 " He has sent you to intercede ?" I said. 
 
 " No indeed. It is my own thought, entirely my 
 own wish to come." 
 
 " I don't exactly know what you mean by forgive- 
 ness," I returned. " I dare say he would not value 
 
 62
 
 84 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 mine. He has shown that he cares little about 
 me." 
 
 " Forgiveness is simply what we all need," said the 
 curate gently. " Faults are committed daily, hourly, 
 but love can blot out everything. It is the feeling of 
 this, the tender leading of this, which draws us back to 
 the right again. Hardness any one can withstand, 
 but not the powerful touch of tenderness." 
 
 I was silent for a moment. 
 
 "Then you think I should show no change to 
 Fred ?" I asked. " Is that what you would have ?" 
 
 " I would show no change in affection" he returned. 
 " As far as reproof has to be given, either in words 
 or acts, you must be guided by your own judg- 
 ment" 
 
 "Fred knows what I have felt," I broke out 
 earnestly, " that it has been pain to me to treat him 
 thus ; but I thought it was the right course." 
 
 " Yes, I know that, or I should not have found it so 
 easy to speak. You have been struggling against 
 your own heart in your endeavour to do what you 
 deemed best. To you, therefore, it will be no diffi- 
 culty to turn to ' the more excellent way.' I need not 
 repeat to you the words of the poet ' To err is 
 human, to forgive divine! " 
 
 I had stopped my gardening, and looked up in his 
 face. The same kind smile which always lightened it 
 was unchanged still, but there was more in it now than 
 I had ever known before a depth, a spiritualism, if I
 
 THE GOLDEN SCEPTRE, 
 
 may so speak, which expressed something beyond 
 geniality of manner. I felt at the moment that he 
 would win one and all not alone to friendship for him- 
 self, but to heartfelt service to Him whose minister 
 and messenger he was.
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 IMMORTAL YOUTH. 
 
 " 'Tis the case with common natures, 
 
 Use 'em kindly, they rebel ; 
 But be rough as nutmeg-graters 
 And the rogues obey you well." 
 
 AARON HILL. 
 
 A MOST astonishing thing happened now. Aunt 
 Rachel determined to give a party a juvenile one, no 
 less. She gave me a shock to begin with, for the 
 vision it called up was not reassuring. I could 
 scarcely imagine her smiling benignly on a circle, and 
 passing from one to the other with pleasant words of 
 encouragement. 
 
 But she had got home a new dress, a gorgeous 
 robe of summer brilliancy, and superabundant trim- 
 mings. She felt impelled to show this, and shine 
 accordingly. Aunt was rather amiably disposed to- 
 wards our rector and his wife, and she stated to me 
 authoritatively that she would ask the whole of their 
 family eight in number.
 
 IMMORTAL YOUTH. 87 
 
 A gracious codicil was thrown in to the effect that 
 invitations might be issued on my part to some other 
 children amongst our acquaintances, with the proviso 
 that no boy over fifteen should be admitted. The 
 fete was to be held out of doors in our pretty rose- 
 garden, where tables and seats were to be arranged 
 for the enjoyment of a delicious sweetmeat repast. 
 So far the programme was promising, for I objected 
 equally with herself to awkward lads of fifteen and 
 upwards, and felt likewise that the freedom of the 
 open air was an indispensable adjunct when she was 
 to be mistress of the ceremonies. But in working 
 out the plan collisions arose. 
 
 Aunt wanted to begin operations at three o'clock. 
 I proposed five. It was well enough for her who saw 
 as little of the young ones as possible to be thus 
 generously disposed towards an early reception. But 
 I, who was inseparably linked with the turmoil and 
 troubles of children all day long, would have found a 
 couple of hours of this additional work all-sufficient 
 for every purpose of amusement. 
 
 However, I yielded up the point, but only to make 
 way for another division. I wished to have tea as the 
 beverage of the entertainment, but she declared this 
 would fuss and heat her to an insupportable degree ; 
 and decreed in favour of claret-cup. It was in vain 
 I represented to her that some of the little ones would 
 neither like this, nor possibly be allowed it. She said 
 claret-cup was not wine, and any one who thought so
 
 88 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 had better drink off a tumbler of port and see the 
 difference. 
 
 As this was a manner of settling the dispute which 
 we could scarcely try with the children, I had to give 
 in again. In the next place she had ideas of her own 
 respecting the games that were to be organised. These 
 views lay in the line of noiselessness and immovability. 
 She had some vague remembrance of forming one of 
 a row of stiff-backed figures, to whom was assigned 
 the cheerful occupation of seeing who could remain 
 longest silent, a forfeit being paid by the first one who 
 broke into speech. This she considered a high-class 
 recreation, and recommended it with warmth. 
 
 " When I was a girl it was our favourite pastime," 
 she pursued ; " that and ' Little Miss Midge.' " 
 
 "What is 'Little Miss Midge'?" I inquired anxiously. 
 
 A feeling of despair was beginning to creep over 
 me at the prospect in view, and I grasped at anything 
 that might be brighter. 
 
 " Don't you know it ?" said my aunt almost angrily. 
 " I can't imagine what you all do nowadays. You 
 have got some new-fangled things on hand that no 
 one can make head or tail of." 
 
 "You have not watched us, aunt," I ventured. 
 " Try it on this occasion, and see if you won't under- 
 stand us better." 
 
 But that suggestion was even worse received than 
 my former query. The part)'' was hers, she declared, 
 and the pastimes should be her own too. As to the
 
 IMMORTAL YOUTH. 89 
 
 mysteries of " Little Miss Midge," she would not un- 
 fold them till the proper moment ; but it was evident 
 she expected then we should one and all be deeply 
 impressed. Fred, who had regained all his spirits 
 since I had placed him on speaking terms with me 
 again, made sundry grimaces meanwhile behind her 
 back which augured ill for his appreciation of the 
 entertainment. 
 
 When the day arrived, it unluckily turned out 
 showery, and this was a dash to the proceedings at 
 once. Aunt, who was certain it would be sunshiny, 
 had provided herself with an immense green parasol 
 and a mushroom hat with a wreath of wild roses. 
 She viewed these articles with asperity even when she 
 saw the rain commence. 
 
 " Think of my wasting my money in this way !" 
 she exclaimed. " I dare say the weather's broken for 
 the whole summer now, but as long as I had only a 
 bonnet it flared in my face fit to blind me." 
 
 " Make the hat over to Merylle," said Fred. " It's 
 the very shape of her head, and looks as if it had 
 been cut out for her." 
 
 He had laughed unmercifully at this crowning- 
 piece of Aunt Rachel's toilet, and, unseen by her, had 
 carried it round the house for exhibition on the point 
 of his stick. 
 
 " Give it to Merylle that baby !" cried my aunt 
 indignantly. " She had better have my green satin 
 gown at once."
 
 90 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 " Indeed I think she better had," said Fred mis- 
 chievously. 
 
 Whereupon Aunt Rachel swept from the room, her 
 chatelaine and eye-glass making such a clatter by the 
 way that the pattering of the rain was nothing to it. 
 
 Fred whistled. 
 
 " We shall have a storm now," he pursued, " and no 
 mistake. Girls, have your waterproofs on. An um- 
 brella, I think, will be my best defence." 
 
 " I wish you would not make her angry on this 
 day," I rejoined. "It is all very well for you to 
 laugh who have nothing to do. The trouble falls on 
 our heads, and to have showers coming down on us 
 also may prove too much of a weight." 
 
 "I believe they are providential," said Fred. " Fancy 
 Aunt Rachel trotting about the grounds in that 
 garb ! We need have had no other amusements 
 for the youngsters." 
 
 "That would have spared us ' Little Miss Midge/ 
 then," said Merylle. "Do you know, Fred, I rather 
 dread that ?" 
 
 " No wonder. I have an inkling of what it is." 
 And he turned up an eye. 
 
 " What is it ?" broke in Merylle eagerly. " Do tell 
 us, Fred ?" 
 
 " Would you really like to hear ? Well, you are to 
 be tied hand and foot to begin with. We all dance in 
 a circle round you, and try who can pull out the 
 longest lock of hair."
 
 IMMORTAL YOUTH. 91 
 
 Merylle gave a little shriek. 
 
 " You cruel fellow ! I do believe you'd, enjoy it. 
 But, bad as Aunt Rachel is, she's better than you. It 
 won't be that, at all events." 
 
 " I advise you to use your hands while you have 
 them," I interposed, " or there will be punishment of 
 some kind in store. If you don't do your practising 
 a little more carefully to-day, I shall put in no plea 
 against the tying process." 
 
 Thereupon Merylle vanished with promptitude, and 
 I followed her soon afterwards to the schoolroom, 
 the rest of the children marshalled in solemn proces- 
 sion before me. Too many holidays had been given 
 to indulge them in one now, notwithstanding their 
 rising excitement respecting the events of the after- 
 noon. George seemed to be growing brighter of late, 
 which gave me a feeling of great pride ; and I re- 
 flected that if I accomplished a reformation in him 
 before my mother's return, I should deserve a prize- 
 medal for ingenuity. Tt was true he looked a little 
 weaker in the body and less full in the face, but then 
 his mind was strengthening and " taking in," and that 
 was the great point. 
 
 It was rather hurried work getting lessons, dinner, 
 and dressing over by three o'clock, but with strenuous 
 efforts I accomplished the business, and had the 
 children ready on the doorstep when the first carriage 
 drove up. 
 
 The rain had ceased for the present, and every-
 
 92 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 thing looked bright again. Crystal Lodge had 
 gained its name from an ornamental glass portico in 
 front, as well as a pretty conservatory which ran 
 round on either side. The drawing-room and library 
 windows opened into the latter, and it made quite a 
 prolonged promenade on a wet day. The school- 
 room and dining-room lay to the back of the house, 
 which was just as well, considering the dangerous 
 affinity of glass for the restless limbs of a boy. 
 
 I thought all was safe now, and was proceeding 
 towards the rectorial party, who were alighting, 
 when a crash fell on my ears. I turned in time to 
 see Dick diving like a wild duck, and his cap cutting 
 clean through an adjacent pane. But for the presence 
 of the guests, I don't know what' I might have been 
 led to. His frightened face also deterred me. Aunt 
 Rachel, at the sound, had rushed out of the drawing- 
 room, and he was absolutely petrified with terror. 
 
 " I was only throwing up my cap to welcome 'em !" 
 he murmured. " I thought it would look well." 
 
 No one could help smiling at his apology, empha- 
 sised by big eyes of cismay, and the rector interfered 
 promptly in his behalf. Aunt Rachel only gave him 
 one awful glance, and this, being nothing new, he was 
 well able to bear it. 
 
 I was kept busy with arrivals now, and despite a 
 grey cloud overhead, aunt proposed an immediate 
 adjournment to the rose-garden. Fortunately there 
 was a summer-house here, in which I had prevailed
 
 IMMORTAL YOUTH. 
 
 93 
 
 upon her to have the repast laid out instead of on the 
 sward, otherwise the discussion over the merits of tea 
 or claret-cup might have been spared. We should 
 have had water enough to satisfy every one's thirst. 
 
 We had scarcely arrived in the most open part of 
 the grounds than a downpour came on, and there was 
 a desperate rush to the shelter of the summer-house. 
 Aunt Rachel's umbrella had gone up with a click, but 
 several of the little ones had nothing but an airy 
 parasol, and I felt impelled, under the circumstances, 
 to set them running at full speed. 
 
 This, it seems, ruffled aunt in the rear ; she did not 
 like to be gained upon, and she was panting with 
 something more than exertion when she reached the 
 threshold of our retreat. There was not immediate 
 room for her entrance, and, as she pushed a passage 
 inwards, I caught a flash from her eye. 
 
 " Could you not all have kept quietly together ?" 
 she exclaimed. " Ellen, you are always so impetuous. 
 You never think of your elders. There is Mr. 
 Horton under the rain still." 
 
 " He is coming in," said Fred ; "if there is room for 
 him? And he glanced significantly at aunt, who 
 seemed to require a sort of circle to herself. 
 
 However, the rector was admitted within the magic 
 ring, and we younger ones found standing or sitting 
 room as we best could around. There was nothing 
 to cheer us up in such a position but the commence- 
 ment of the feasting, and we set to it accordingly
 
 94 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 It had been intended we should have inspected the 
 roses and paraded the walks first, but even Aunt 
 Rachel admitted the impossibility of keeping to this 
 programme, and turned her attention to the big 
 claret-bowl. For my part, I plied the children with 
 tarts and creams till the space was really becoming 
 limited, and I began to question my severity upon 
 the capabilities of George. It was evident he was 
 not the only child in the world who could consume 
 viands and show silent enjoyment under the process. 
 Still it was a wise disposition of Providence in the 
 present emergency, since imprisonment with Aunt 
 Rachel would have been too trying an ordeal had the 
 party wished to use their tongues in any other way. 
 
 I had always believed in the degeneracy of boys, 
 but the little girls surprised me. A sudden ray of 
 sunshine was the first thing to quicken their faculties 
 and send some superfluous crumbs over frocks and 
 floor as they started to their feet. Their brothers 
 were already alert, and were off in a mad frolic down 
 the steps of the summer-house before aunt's voice 
 could check them. 
 
 " Ellen, Ellen ! call them back !" she cried to me. 
 " We must have things in order. This will never do ! 
 The games are to come on next." 
 
 I pleaded that the grass was too wet yet for the 
 young ladies to venture on, and got a reprieve of half 
 an hour for the escaped band. Meanwhile I took the 
 girls under my wing and showed them the cascade,
 
 IMMORTAL YOUTH. 95 
 
 the rockery, and all the points of interest about the 
 adjacent grounds. These being exhausted, and the 
 boys not forthcoming, I determined on allowing them 
 to have races along the gravel walks which were now 
 shining in the sunbeams. 
 
 To give greater spirit to the proceedings, I em- 
 barked in one of these contests myself, and we were 
 all turning a corner at full speed when we rushed 
 nearly into Mr. Locke's arms. 
 
 I did not know that he was an invited guest, and 
 began apologies and explanations. 
 
 " You find us in a wild state," I said. " But we 
 have some young friends for the afternoon. The rain 
 kept us in until now, and we have broken loose with 
 a vengeance." 
 
 " I find you as I hoped," he exclaimed, " in the 
 midst of enjoyment." 
 
 From this I divined that Aunt Rachel had asked 
 him ; but in her determination to make the matter 
 unimportant to me had not even mentioned it. I 
 smiled at the moment. 
 
 "Are you to help us with 'Little Miss Midge'?" 
 I said. 
 
 " What is that ? a new game, Miss Wynham ?" 
 
 " No, no ; a very old one !" and my countenance 
 showed amusement again. " Aunt Rachel is to 
 restore it." 
 
 " I am here to make myself useful in any way," he 
 returned. "And there I hear your aunt call-
 
 96 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 ing to us now. I suppose proceedings begin at 
 once." 
 
 Though we obeyed the summons very promptly, I 
 can't say as much for the dutifulness of the boys. 
 
 Mr. Locke had to rush hither and thither like a 
 distracted usher; I had to raise my voice till it was 
 hoarser than a raven's ; and aunt herself had to stand 
 for some time on the steps of the summer-house, 
 waving her striped Indian shawl, ere the truants 
 appeared. 
 
 When they were got hold of at last, they showed 
 tokens of rebellion still, and only that aunt had some 
 prize baskets of delicious fruit, ranged in order for 
 the winners of the games, I doubt that she could have 
 started us at all. She had given up her pet pastime 
 of " The Silent Benches" as unsuited to a mixed 
 multitude and an open-air recreation ; but she per- 
 sisted in others which were scarcely of a more cheerful 
 type. 
 
 The "Friar of Orders Grey" was a doleful pro- 
 cession, headed most unfitly by Fred. We were 
 supposed to march solemnly round a given holly-bush, 
 and to stop at a signal from her, and face round the 
 other way. Forfeits was the only rightful enlivenment 
 of the business, for if any one was a second late in 
 turning, a penalty was to be inflicted at once. 
 
 Fred, however, could not resist the temptation of 
 bringing more spirit into the proceedings. He wheeled 
 about at unexpected moments, and in wild irregularity,
 
 IMMORTAL YOUTH. 97 
 
 falling with a vengeance of his own upon more sedate 
 promenaders. In his last turn he brought the whole 
 party to the ground by some electric contrivance 
 passing from one to the other ; and aunt arose then 
 in wrath. 
 
 " I can do nothing with that boy !" she cried. "Let 
 him leave us, and you shall have a grand game now. 
 We will begin ' Little Miss Midge.' " 
 
 I saw Merylle fly at the name ; but aunt caught 
 her by the back of her hat. This seemed a pre- 
 liminary to the seizure upon her curls, and she looked 
 still more panic-stricken. 
 
 " Where are you running to, miss ?" said Aunt 
 Rachel fiercely. " I want you especially for this. It 
 is your brother who is sent away." 
 
 " No, no, aunt," broke in Fred. " I'm going to be 
 good as gold. Let me stay, and I'll help to set them 
 spinning." 
 
 It was a circle, indeed, which was to be formed. 
 Aunt made us all take hands, and as the ominous 
 circumference was described, Merylle, who was the 
 only one left out, grew pale again. 
 
 " You are to go in the middle, miss," pursued Aunt 
 Rachel authoritatively. 
 
 But at this fatal confirmation of Fred's idea, Merylle 
 took flight in earnest. 
 
 It was in vain that I called to her, that aunt clutched 
 at her ; she eluded us both, and her funny little figure 
 was only captured after much difficulty by Fred. 
 
 7
 
 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 At this juncture something stronger than Aunt 
 Rachel's decrees put an end to her alarms. The rain r 
 which had been threatening for the last few minutes, 
 came down with a sudden vengeance anew. The sky 
 looked hopeless, and an adjournment to the house 
 was the only thing to be thought of. 
 
 Here I came to the rescue of the disconsolate 
 youngsters in the most propitious manner possible. 
 I provided tea and cakes with immediate despatch, 
 and I believe no better conclusion to the day could 
 have been found. 
 
 The carriages came round shortly afterwards, and 
 all drove away, leaving aunt, however, in rather 
 doubtful humour. 
 
 " Such weather !" she murmured, casting an angry 
 look at the sky. " It has spoiled everything. And 
 there ! I do believe it is going to clear now, just when 
 all is over." 
 
 " It cleared more than once," I said. " It might 
 have been far worse. A showery day is not a com- 
 plete failure. I think they all enjoyed themselves 
 very much." 
 
 These words composed her a little, and she went off 
 to see about Flossy, who was still somewhat of an 
 invalid. 
 
 " Now, Merylle," exclaimed Fred, with a sly pinch, 
 " you have lost a chance of enlightening the world and 
 doing good service to your country. But for you we 
 should all have gained invaluable knowledge to-day,
 
 IMMORTAL YOUTH. 99 
 
 even if you had suffered by it. I did not think you 
 were such a little coward." 
 
 " It is better than to be a big tease," retorted 
 Merylle. "Whatever aunt intended, I knew you 
 would play some tricks upon me." 
 
 This was too probable a proceeding to be diselaimed, 
 and Fred could only give his pet another little pinch. 
 
 Meanwhile I felt rather anxious about George. He 
 had looked of a sickly pallor all the afternoon, and 
 scarcely had we reached the house than he had dis- 
 appeared from the scene, resisting even the constrain- 
 ing aroma of tea and spice-cakes. 
 
 " Have any of you seen George ?" I asked. 
 
 " I did," said Dick. " He said he was hungry when 
 we came in, and I saw him stealing towards the 
 pantry. Eliza had left the door open, and I am sure 
 he's locked up there this moment." 
 
 I ran at the words and found that the supposition 
 was correct. George was in imprisonment. But he 
 was making no outcries for release. When I opened 
 the door he was seated on a Cheshire cheese munch- 
 ing a tea-cake. It was too much. I seized him by the 
 arm, dragged him forth, and ordered him instantly to 
 bed. 
 
 " I was hungry," he whimpered. " I got nothing 
 all day." 
 
 "Nothing!" I ejaculated. "And you had your 
 dinner at one o'clock, and have been feasting in the 
 summer-house ever since." 
 
 72
 
 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 " I wasn't ; they was" he answered. " You never 
 minded me." 
 
 " You were certainly not the first," I said, with a 
 reproving shake. " But you take good care to cram 
 yourself. You look as ill as possible this moment. 
 No doubt you have been eating up all the remnants." 
 
 The shelves indeed looked conspicuously bare, and 
 I thought it only a wise precaution to carry out my 
 mandate as to the early retirement. As this cut him 
 off from supper, there was a continued wail, but I re- 
 sisted its importunity and remained inflexible. 
 
 The next morning George was ill. I felt that the 
 attack was due to over-feeding, and got very angry 
 when the nurse hinted that it was from want of his 
 evening meal. However it might be, he could not eat 
 now. I could scarcely believe in this condition at 
 first. But when I had brought him a cup of tea and a 
 slice of toast myself, and saw him turn away his head 
 rejectingly, even I was convinced, and thought there 
 was something pitiful in the aspect of his abstinence. 
 
 He was such a silent child I had no idea I should 
 have missed him in the schoolroom or elsewhere that 
 morning, but somehow I did. The gaze of his 
 solemn brown eyes seemed to follow me hauntingly, 
 and I longed to see his stolid little figure in its brown 
 pinafore seated on the high stool as usual. How 
 strange it is that we scarcely value things till we have 
 lost them ! Nothing seems to have its due worth 
 when it is set actually before us. Distance, which
 
 IMMORTAL YOUTH. 
 
 diminishes the apparent proportions of objects, and 
 absence, which is supposed to blot them out, often 
 bring them for the first time clearly before our view. 
 The feeling of this had grown very strong for me of 
 late, as I pictured the dear forms of father and mother. 
 When they were present I had failed to realise all 
 that they were and had ever been to us ; they did not 
 appear half so necessary to my heart's happiness. It 
 was only when tears of regret and yearning had filled 
 my eyes that I saw them in their true aspect as the 
 loving heads of a home and household which had no 
 proper bond of union without them. 
 
 George remained unwell for several days, and 
 during that time I was so restlessly anxious for his 
 recovery that I neglected the other children. Dick 
 fell into hopeless disgrace with Aunt Rachel on 
 account of his growing untidiness; and Merylle's piano- 
 forte performance became so wildly aggressive that 
 the smashing of the instrument at one stroke would 
 have been gentleness itself in comparison with her 
 prolonged ferocity. 
 
 Lucy's little feet pattered everywhere after me. If 
 I went to schoolroom, store-closet, or George's bed- 
 side, she followed inevitably. I thought the proceed- 
 ing harmless, and calculated to keep her out of 
 mischief: not so Aunt Rachel. She appeared sud- 
 denly in the doorway of the library when we were 
 making our rounds, and pounced upon us directly. 
 
 " What is that child about ?" she cried. " She keeps
 
 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 trotting up and down incessantly. How can I write 
 my letters, or do anything with such noise and fidget ? 
 It is enough to drive one distracted." 
 
 " Lucy, go into the schoolroom," I said, " and look 
 over your picture-books. I will be with you pre- 
 sently." 
 
 But she clung to my dress and murmured some- 
 thing about Dick which had touching significance. 
 
 If Merylle had been good for anything, she ought 
 to have been able to take her in charge. But the 
 former followed too closely in the steps of her 
 brother Fred to be available for much but giddiness. 
 
 It was with a feeling of mingled delight and thank- 
 fulness that I saw George at the breakfast-table 
 again. Never before had I plied him so generously 
 with viands, and a smile actually stole into his big 
 brown eyes at the unexpected beneficence. 
 
 Aunt Rachel was fonder of him, I think, than of 
 the others, he was so quiet. Thus his appearance 
 gained a welcome from her, too; and everything 
 looked pleasant and prosperous after an interim of 
 uneasiness.
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 A DAY OF ALARM. 
 
 " Oh ! let my weakness have an end ! 
 Give unto me, made lowly wise, 
 The spirit of self-sacrifice ; 
 The confidence of reason give ; 
 And in the light of truth thy bondmaid let me live !" 
 
 WORDSWORTH. 
 
 NEVER shall I forget the happy morning on which I 
 received a letter from my parents announcing their 
 return. They were already in England, and were to 
 be with us the same evening. At the risk of occa- 
 sioning a variety of new accidents, I sprang up and 
 embraced the children all round again. They were 
 in blooming order. I could exhibit them with tri- 
 umph, and my heart felt a mixture of pride and 
 elation. The whole world appeared to bound into 
 sympathy with my joy. 
 
 There had been rain in the night, but sunshine was 
 golden once more. Diamonds sparkled on leaf and 
 flower ; the air was buoyant, and seemed to me in
 
 104 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 every breath to carry whispers of the coming happi- 
 ness. I was eager to have the house and place in 
 perfect order for the arrival. The children so far 
 were promising, and I thought I would leave them to 
 play on this occasion, and devote myself with vigour 
 to the duties of housewife and gardener. The store- 
 room wanted tidying up, and the flower-beds in front 
 of the conservatory, which were my special care, de- 
 manded a finishing-touch to bring their culture into 
 prominence. 
 
 When I grew very busy I was apt to become a 
 little fussy. Having abandoned the young ones to 
 their own resources, I did not want to see anything 
 more of them, and I waved my arms with a warning 
 gesture for retreat whenever they came within sight. 
 This was all very well till the early dinner-bell rang. 
 That was a summons sure to be attended to, and 
 which generally met with an eager and prompt 
 response. It gathered the party now in rather wild 
 condition, but still safe in limb, and sound in health, 
 if I were to judge by the hungry appetites. 
 
 After this, one and all scattered' again, at least I 
 had thought so, till I met with an unwelcome inter- 
 ruption. I had devoted the morning to out-door 
 operations, and was at present in the store-closet 
 giving directions about the evening repast for the 
 travellers, when I heard a trotting foot at my side. 
 It announced Lucy's advent, and a little pleading 
 voice broke forth simultaneously.
 
 A DAY OF ALARM. 105 
 
 " Ellie ! Ellie ! Do give me a French plum," she 
 began. " I know where you have them in that big 
 box over there." 
 
 Now it happened that at that moment I had dis- 
 covered a provoking want in my stores. An impor- 
 tant ingredient was lacking for a pudding which both 
 my father and mother were especially fond of. I had 
 determined to show my thoughtfulness by having it 
 prepared for them on this occasion, and I felt greatly 
 vexed when I found the impossibility of so doing. 
 
 " You little tease, run away this instant !" I ex- 
 claimed to Lucy. " You follow me everywhere ! I 
 can do nothing, think of nothing amongst you all. It 
 is no wonder things are forgotten. You never give 
 me a second's peace." 
 
 I did not trouble myself about the effect of my 
 words. I had other matters to occupy me, and before 
 my household duties were satisfactorily concluded an 
 hour had passed over. It was then nearly four 
 o'clock. Our parents were expected between six 
 and seven, and I had ordered a late dinner for 
 them. 
 
 I heard Aunt Rachel calling to me at this moment, 
 and was obliged to go to her in the library. She had 
 just discovered some dire mischief which Dick had 
 wrought. He was amazingly fond of ink. I suppose 
 the colour had attraction for him as well as the in- 
 delible nature of its dye. However he was guarded, 
 he infallibly contrived to dabble in it in somewise,
 
 io6 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 and an awful trace of his dark propensities had been 
 left now. 
 
 The writing-table was a mass of blots on its 
 polished surface, and wild arithmetical figures danced 
 a sort of hobgoblin frolic on the back of the portfolio. 
 
 Dick was apt to be seized with a calculating mania 
 at unpropitious moments, and no thought of care or 
 cleanliness deterred him from working out his in- 
 spirations forthwith. 
 
 It was at this luckless table that Aunt Rachel 
 penned her effusions to her maiden friends. Some 
 sheets of her best crested paper had suffered in the 
 general destruction, and she was crimson with anger. 
 
 "You are the most terrible set of children," she 
 declaimed passionately. " If you were good for any- 
 thing, Ellen, you could have checked them in a 
 measure. But they grow worse every day. What a 
 blessing this state of things is coming to an end at 
 last ! No one could have borne it much longer." 
 
 I felt my pulses start off at a gallop, like her own. 
 Was this really true ? Was my boasted rule such an 
 utter failure, a mere vision of conceit, which was 
 powerless for good in the actual sphere of duty ? It 
 might be so, yet I could not fully believe it. Aunt 
 Rachel was a hard judge. I would not accept her 
 condemnation. 
 
 " It would be impossible to please you, aunt," I ex- 
 claimed warmly. " I have done my very best, and 
 I am sure my mother will say so. Accidents hap-
 
 A DAY OF ALARM. 107 
 
 pened when she was at home, too. Dick has been 
 always the same." 
 
 " Do you know where he is now ?" was her re- 
 joinder. 
 
 "No," I said quickly, uneasiness stealing over me 
 at the query. 
 
 " He is in the harness-room," broke out my aunt in 
 a terrible voice ; " blacker than anything I ever saw 
 in my life. He has been forbidden that place thou- 
 sands of times ; but there he was when I was coming 
 round from the garden, with a brush in his hand, and 
 daubed from head to foot. His mother won't know 
 him." 
 
 " Why did you not bring him in ?" I demanded. 
 " I have been as busy as can be. Surely, aunt, you 
 might have done that much." 
 
 " Bring him in !" she almost screamed. " Do you 
 think I would let him within fifty yards of me ? No, 
 no, miss ; you may manage that capture yourself, if 
 you please." 
 
 Of course I had to rush forth then, and when I 
 found Dick, I saw that my aunt's descriptive powers 
 had not been too vividly exercised. He was in an 
 appalling state his garments hopelessly besmeared, 
 and his skin shining like a negro's from the alternate 
 application of brush and blacking. I caught him by 
 the sleeve, the farthest extremity possible, but even 
 that was perilous contact, and I was almost relieved 
 when he released himself.
 
 io8 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 "Oh, Ellie !" he exclaimed; "ain't I just hard at 
 work ! I'm helping Thomas with the harness for this 
 evening. Father likes it bright, and it's as good as 
 a mirror this minute. You can see your very face 
 in it." 
 
 " I wish you could see your own face," I interposed 
 wrathfully, "and perhaps you would think less of 
 your work. I don't know how you are to appear 
 before your father and mother. Do you imagine they 
 would rather have the harness in order than yourself? 
 It's absurd of you to talk of polishing and cleaning 
 up. It's a good bath you should be in from morning 
 till night. It would be the only fit place for you." 
 
 Thereupon I marched him before me to the house, 
 keeping a safe distance between us, but watching nar- 
 rowly all the time that he did not escape. 
 
 " Where are the others ?" I questioned as we gained 
 the portico. 
 
 " I don't know," said Dick. " In the quarry, I dare 
 say. Fred wanted us to play 'Pilgrim's Progress/ 
 and go through the 'Valley of Humiliation.' " 
 
 There were rather hazardous paths overhanging the 
 aforesaid quarry, and I started at the mention of it. 
 Fred was foolhardy himself, and if he took it into his 
 head to carry out the analogy between Christian and 
 his journeying, he would of course make the way as 
 trying and difficult as possible for his followers. 
 
 Happily all uneasiness was removed at the moment 
 by the sound of a chorus of voices. Fred's headed it,
 
 A DA Y OF ALARM. 109 
 
 and as his tones were full and ringing as usual, it \vas 
 to be presumed no accident had happened. 
 
 Meanwhile time was passing, and calling to the 
 children to come in at once, and get themselves 
 trimmed and tidied, I ran up myself to my mother's 
 dressing-room. A few finishing-touches were wanting 
 here. The snowy muslin curtains had still to be 
 looped up with their blue ribbons, and some fragrant 
 flowers were to be arranged the last thing in the 
 glasses on the toilet-table. 
 
 The work was just completed when I heard the 
 nurse's voice calling to me. It was rather anxious in 
 its tones ; and anticipating some further disfigurement 
 to Dick, I hastened to respond. 
 
 "What is the matter, nurse?" I said, running out 
 on the lobby. 
 
 " Nothing, miss, I hope," was the reply. " But I 
 am looking for Miss Lucy. Have you got her ?" 
 
 " I !" broke from my lips. " No, no. ... Did she 
 not come in with the others ? I have not seen her for 
 hours." 
 
 " She wasn't with them at all," returned the woman. 
 " Not one has laid eyes on 'er since dinner." 
 
 I grew pale at the words. 
 
 In a panic of fright I sprang down the stairs, along 
 the passages, and rushed from one to the other of the 
 household asking breathlessly if they could tell any- 
 thing about the child. But the same blank account 
 met me everywhere.
 
 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 It appeared that the cook and myself were the last 
 persons who had seen her as she peered into the 
 store-room, coaxing in her pretty childish way for 
 some sweetmeat. I remembered that she had on her 
 round gipsy hat then, and I had felt certain when I 
 dismissed her that she was about to join the elder 
 children, and have a play with them in the grounds. 
 
 Aunt Rachel was still at the writing-table in the 
 library, and I turned to her as a last resource. But 
 when I broke in on her here with questionings and 
 eagerness, she looked quite angry. 
 
 " Don't get into such a puff, Ellen," she exclaimed ; 
 " that won't do any good. Of course the child will 
 turn up. There was never one of them that didn't. 
 Ring the bell for tea, and see if she doesn't come tear- 
 ing along in a trice." 
 
 The suggestion, though so sharply put, was not one 
 to be disregarded. Fred appreciated it, at all events, 
 and seizing on the great hall-bell he went forth with 
 a will, swinging it vigorously on all sides, till the whole 
 of the outdoor work-people gathered in surprise. 
 
 They were, of course, interrogated in turn, but with 
 the same results ; an utter dearth of intelligence was 
 reported everywhere. 
 
 Meanwhile I was darting wildly through the house, 
 searching each nook and corner, and calling im- 
 ploringly on our little Lucy. 
 
 She was a shy, sensitive child, and I thought it 
 possible that, repulsed by me, she might have crept
 
 A DAY OF ALARM. 
 
 away to fret in secret. But not a trace of her could 
 be discovered, and I was becoming momentarily more 
 agonised with alarm. No thought of pride and suc- 
 cessfulness in my management or preparations in- 
 truded now. I could have swept away every doing 
 and merit of my own in the intense longing to recall 
 one act of hastiness. How gladly would I have stood 
 before my mother, bereft of all credit and commenda- 
 tion, if I could only have had her children ready to 
 greet her. unbroken in number, unchanged in health 
 and happiness! Bitterly I reproached myself for 
 driving Lucy away, knowing, as I did, her innate 
 timidity, and her tendency to accept any repulse as a 
 sort of absolute rejection. But still, where was 
 she ? However I might have wounded her, what 
 had happened, whither had she stolen to ? She 
 never went far from the house by herself, and every 
 spot within reach or view had been thoroughly 
 searched. 
 
 Putting ceaseless suppositions to myself, I went 
 restlessly again and again over the same ground. I 
 had quitted the house, and was running hither and 
 thither outside, when I paused at last at the extremity 
 of the garden. This plot of ground had been laid out 
 in old-fashioned style, beginning with a parterre of 
 flowers and shrubs, and ending with vegetables and 
 fruit-trees. Beyond was an apple orchard, and the 
 boundary division between it and the upper garden 
 was a long, narrow sheet of water.
 
 r 1 2 MY MO TREKS DIAMONDS. 
 
 I stood and gazed, and a cold fear struck to my 
 heart at the moment. There were water-lilies on the 
 pond, their dark circling leaves spread around the 
 margin, and the beautiful white blossoms floated 
 lightly, like some fairy barks, on the shining surface. 
 
 I recalled with a thrill that Lucy had pleaded for 
 some of these flowers but the day before, and I had 
 refused her, not liking to pluck them, and spoil the 
 lovely picture before our parents' return. 
 
 A footstep behind me made me start almost with a 
 shudder. Fred was there ; but he was really anxious 
 now, and I clung to him piteously. 
 
 " Oh, Fred .... Fred ! why did you come here ?" 
 I murmured. " You don't think anything can have 
 happened?" 
 
 " No, no, Nell," he exclaimed cheeringly. " She'll 
 be found ; I haven't a doubt of it. Lucy is an odd 
 child. She has crept away somewhere, but you'll see 
 she'll be got." 
 
 My frightened glance was still turned on the water. 
 Fred's eyes followed it, and putting his hand in mine, 
 he drew me away from the vicinity, making me re- 
 trace my steps along the walk. 
 
 "You mustn't think of such a thing," he said. 
 " Lucy would never come so far alone. I still be- 
 lieve, Nell, she is somewhere in hiding in the house." 
 
 The words sent me flying thither once more, but 
 scarcely had I gained the porch than I stopped, and 
 the icy qualm came suddenly back upon me. Turn-
 
 A DAY OF ALARM. 1 13 
 
 ing, I had seen that Fred was beckoning to one of 
 the men. He had got rid of me, but not of his own 
 fears, and he went off hastily again, followed by the 
 man, in the direction of the garden. 
 
 At the moment a grating noise reached my ears. 
 I knew the sound too well, and what it announced. 
 The carnage was rolling round from the yard upon 
 the gravel drive. Thomas, mindful and punctual as 
 ever, was starting for the train to meet his master and 
 mistress. They were coming back, they would be 
 here in less than an hour. The joy so long antici- 
 pated, so ardently implored, drew nigh at last, and I, 
 who had sprung towards it so often in irresistible 
 yearning, started back from it now. I could not face 
 it ; it had turned to terror in my eyes. How could I 
 meet father and mother, who had trusted me, when 
 one was missing from the circle ? What greeting 
 could be heard or heeded with the words wrung from 
 a mother's heart echoing in my ears " Ellen, Ellen ! 
 Take care of my little Lucy !" 
 
 I stood for some minutes on the door-step motion- 
 less paralysed. I felt the necessity for action 
 pressing stronger than ever upon me, but the power 
 to respond was gone. I could only watch with be- 
 wildered gaze the carriage moving rapidly along the 
 avenue, passing beneath the arched gateway at the 
 lodge, and disappearing finally on the road beyond. 
 
 The sun was sinking in the heavens with a rosy 
 smile. No cloud overcast its countenance, or fore-
 
 ii 4 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. * 
 
 shadowed trouble in the face of Nature. Everywhere 
 was the memory of warmth and beauty, present glory, 
 and happy hopeful promise for the coming day, 
 Flowers had that peculiar rich scent which is drawn 
 from a glowing heart. The very breath of evening 
 that closed their petals might have been a caress, so 
 softly was its touch laid on them. The pleasant 
 cawing of the rooks as they flew to their nests in the 
 elm avenue beyond had the music of home and 
 happiness in its tone. Nothing was wrong or want- 
 ing in the fair world around, yet each sound, each 
 vision struck on me with a pang. I could bear it no 
 longer, I could gaze no more on a scene of peaceful- 
 ness, and with a start, as if I had been driven forth by 
 a resistless hand, I sprang down the steps, and sped 
 once again in the direction of the garden-walk. 
 
 I had not gone far when I was brought to a pause, 
 A voice was calling to me, and in a sudden hope of 
 some tidings I turned instinctively. But it was only 
 Mr. Locke I saw, and I felt that the presence of any 
 stranger was intolerable now. Yet something in his 
 expression arrested me. I divined that he knew of 
 our distress, and I flew to him the next instant with 
 irrepressible eagerness. I caught his hand in the 
 excess of my longing. 
 
 " Oh, Mr. Locke !" I exclaimed, " have you heard 
 anything ? Has Lucy been found ?" 
 
 His eyes were full of kindness, even emotion. 
 
 " Not yet," he murmured ; " but she will be. I
 
 A DAY OF ALARM. 1 1 5 
 
 have no fear about it. Dear Miss Wynham, do not 
 yield to this uneasiness. I came to tell you that I am 
 going to help in the search, that everything will be 
 done, if you will only remain in the house, if you will 
 but wait quietly there." 
 
 " But they are coming back !" I cried. " My father, 
 my mother ! They will be here immediately. Oh, 
 Mr. Locke, how can I wait ?" 
 
 "Before their return all may be well," he urged. 
 " You may have the little one safe with you again. 
 Let me beg of you to do this. It is the wish of every 
 one, not mine alone." And he would have drawn me 
 gently in the direction of the house. 
 
 But I resisted pressure and persuasion. I stopped, 
 turned round on the walk, and my eyes grew dis- 
 tended with the anguished fear which was too living 
 to be driven back. 
 
 " But the water !" I murmured. " Fred is there. I 
 must see. I must know all !" 
 
 " There is nothing to know," interposed Mr. Locke 
 quickly. "I met your brother just now. She has 
 not been at the pond." 
 
 "Thank God!" I cried, and I clasped my hands 
 together in the impulse of more than relief. 
 
 I was less unyielding at once, and, reassured by the 
 promises of Mr. Locke that he would have the search 
 prosecuted more vigorously than ever, I acceded to 
 his wish and re-entered the house. 
 
 It had been the middle of June when my parents 
 
 82
 
 ii6 My MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 left us. Now it was the month of August. It was 
 drawing towards its close, and the evenings, though 
 lovely, soon gained an imperceptible chill. I watched 
 and waited patiently for more than half an hour. 
 Then a sudden tremor ran through me. I had 
 caught a distant noise. It was the low rumbling of 
 wheels. 
 
 The nurse had the three children with her upstairs; 
 Aunt Rachel had gone to her own room, and I was 
 standing alone in the hall when the sound reached 
 me. Oh, how strange life looked to me then ! What 
 darkening hand had been outstretched to change and 
 cloud it as in a moment ! Here was the joy I had 
 pictured, longed for the return of my beloved parents 
 and I shrank from it, I shuddered at it ! 
 
 I fell on my knees where I was, and, with the in- 
 tensity which only a heart-prayer knows, I implored 
 succour from One who is stronger than sorrow, from 
 Him who is " a very present help in time of trouble." 
 " Surely He must hear me," I said to myself, as the 
 piteous cry broke forth. " He is too good, too loving, 
 to turn away from His poor, pleading child." And 
 then with a sudden gush of tears a measure of relief 
 came, and with it the first rising of a hope. 
 
 But the sound drew nearer the dreaded instant 
 approached. I rose and rushed into the portico. My 
 overwrought brain had not deceived me. The car- 
 riage had passed the last turn in the avenue ; it was 
 coming swiftly to the door. I felt that I had grown
 
 A DAY OF ALARM. 117 
 
 pale as death, but I stood motionless awaiting the in- 
 evitable blow. 
 
 At that moment the blood rushed back to my face, 
 every nerve in my body bounded into life. I had 
 heard a voice a call from the shrubbery-walk. 
 \Vhat it meant I could not fully tell, but there was 
 excitement in the tones. I darted down the steps 
 and ran breathlessly forward.
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 COMING EVENTS. 
 
 " Hail to that house ! all good befall 
 Where Jesus Christ is Lord of all. 
 Ah, if His presence were not there, 
 How empty and how lone it were !" 
 
 GERMAN HYMN. 
 
 THE voice had been Mr. Locke's. It was he who 
 called me. I saw him hastening along the walk and 
 yet I scarcely saw him. With a rapture for which I 
 have no words, I perceived that he bore Lucy in his 
 arms. Her cheeks were dimpled, glowing as ever, 
 and she had a big coloured picture-book in her hand. 
 No harm had happened to her ; her nimble little feet 
 were ready and active, and at the first sight of the 
 carriage, she sprang from the detaining clasp. As 
 the horses were reined up she was there at the instant. 
 She was the first after all to greet her mother ! That 
 her curls were tossed, her dress crushed, and her 
 pretty face a little flushed and wild-looking mattered 
 nothing to me then. She was there she was safe,
 
 COMING EVENTS. 
 
 119 
 
 and the dreadful agony of the past moments was 
 blotted out like a dream. 
 
 The travellers were already out of the carnage 
 when I approached, and Lucy was in her father's 
 arms. The other children had rushed down from the 
 nursery, and all crowded together on the steps. Fred 
 was the only one wanting, but as I looked around 
 for him anxiously, I saw him springing across the 
 lawn. 
 
 " My darlings ! My Diamonds !" murmured my 
 mother as she held one after another to her heart. 
 " Thank God that I have you all safe again !" 
 
 Tears which have once flowed are always near to 
 the surface, and I could scarcely restrain mine now. 
 I was filled with an emotion and thankfulness which 
 none could know of. I thought of the love which 
 encircled all, which had sent a smile of peace upon 
 our home, instead of the shadow of desolation. If 
 my lips uttered nothing, my heart was not silent ; 
 and the words of the touching German hymn rushed 
 to mind : 
 
 " Joy is stronger than sorrow, 
 Life stronger than death, 
 Light stronger than darkness 
 So, all that have breath 
 
 Praise the Lord !" 
 
 Meanwhile Mr. Locke had stolen away. He had 
 not wished to intrude at a moment like this. But as 
 I saw him disappearing on the avenue, I ran im-
 
 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 pulsively after him. I could not let him leave 
 without a word. Once more I seized his hands with 
 irrepressible fervour. 
 
 " Where did you find her ?" I exclaimed. " How 
 am I to thank you ?" 
 
 " She was in the barn," he returned quickly ; 
 " locked up in the barn. She had crept in there to 
 look at her picture-book, and fell asleep amongst the 
 sheaves. The door, which is generally kept fastened, 
 had only been left open for a minute or two. Thus 
 no one thought of searching for her in a shut-up 
 house, barred on the outside. When she awakened, 
 and began to cry out, she was soon found." 
 
 He gave the explanation hurriedly, not to detain 
 me, and was gone the next instant. 
 
 I might have thought that nothing but happiness 
 and gratitude could have filled my heart on this 
 night. But our best thoughts seem the most fleeting. 
 We are drawn ever and again from upraised emotions 
 to the lower atmosphere of earth. The jealousy I 
 have already spoken of haunted me for a while. I 
 fancied my mother surrounded herself with the other 
 children with a gladness which shut out me. I have 
 well used the word fancied, for in this lay all the self- 
 inflicted pain. She could not but respond to the 
 childish caresses of the little ones, but when I was 
 taking leave of her for the night I was drawn tightly 
 to her arms, and I felt tears of affection upon my 
 cheeks. I had told her myself of the agitation of that
 
 COMING EVENTS. 
 
 day, and she could guess that I had gone through 
 much. 
 
 " Ellie, Ellie ! my own dear little girl !" she mur- 
 mured. " Are you glad to have your mother back 
 with you again ?" 
 
 I could only respond with a clasp, for my heart 
 was full. Once more the joy of trust and lovingness 
 had stolen over it, and when I was laid to rest in my 
 little white-curtained bed, I slept with a sweetness 
 and soundness which carried me back to my very 
 earliest years. It was broad daylight when I awoke, 
 and for an instant I could scarcely recollect what 
 was the sense of delight which had overshadowed me 
 even in my dreams. The moment it came to mind I 
 sprang up joyously, and hastened, when I was ready, 
 to my mother's dressing-room. A sort of pressure 
 seemed removed from me, and freedom had come 
 back again. 
 
 I had tasted the pleasure of authority, and found 
 that it tied me down to an unwonted bondage. In- 
 stead of making me my own mistress, it had made 
 me the handmaid of others, and I realised that the 
 relation of child to parents is a very sweet state of 
 subjection. The former has only to give trust. With 
 the latter rests all the thought, trouble, and anxiety 
 which bring happiness to bear upon the younger lives. 
 
 My morning greetings to father and mother partook 
 of an eager warmth on this occasion, and the little 
 ones capered about in wild elation. It made me un-
 
 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 easy for their later aspect at the breakfast-table, and 
 I was hoping they would have put in an improved 
 appearance. 
 
 " Dick, do be quiet !" I exclaimed, as he jumped 
 madly down the stairs, clearing Eliza and the coal- 
 scuttle at the bottom. " You will be certain to make 
 a figure of yourself before you stop." 
 
 " Mother doesn't mind," he said. " She'll like me 
 anyhow." 
 
 And with this reckless statement he managed to 
 trip up the housemaid more successfully, and scatter 
 some of the coals by the collision. 
 
 That he was obligingly active in picking them up 
 had nothing meritorious in my eyes. His help was 
 given only too gladly in a case where a black mark 
 might be acquired in the process. I soiled a fresh 
 handkerchief in trying to bring him white again, and 
 met no further reward for my efforts than a series of 
 impatient gestures all the while. 
 
 "That'll do, Ellie! that'll do!" he murmured; 
 " you are such a fidget about things ! I've got to go 
 out and feed the pups yet." 
 
 This announcement was enough. It was wasted 
 work, of a truth, to pay any regard to his appearance 
 now, when a visit to the yard was in immediate 
 prospect. 
 
 In honour of our parents' return, all the children 
 were allowed into the dining-room on this morning, 
 and the nursery repast was still dispensed with.
 
 COMING EVENTS. 123 
 
 Aunt Rachel came down with an important air, 
 and exhibited the array as some jewels of her own 
 brightening. 
 
 " There they are, Eleanor !" she exclaimed to my 
 mother. " Every one safe and sound ; and hard work 
 it was to guard them !" 
 
 " George looks a little pale, I think," said my 
 mother anxiously. 
 
 It was strange how she loved that child. His 
 speechless placidity, his steady appetite, his mental 
 dulness nothing had power to arrest the flow of 
 tenderness in her heart. 
 
 " He was ill for a few days," returned Aunt Rachel, 
 "and Ellen kept him somewhat low. She said it 
 would be better for him.", 
 
 I darted a reproachful look on the speaker. There 
 was an unkind insinuation here which I did not think 
 I deserved. 
 
 " George has had plenty to eat," I broke in warmly. 
 " Rather too much, I should say. Ask Fred, or 
 Merylle, or any of them." 
 
 " There was no occasion to give him ' too much,' " 
 said my mother gently. 
 
 " I did not give it he took it," I returned. 
 . " Well, he is delicate ; we must remember that," 
 was the reply, and at the words I felt almost angry. 
 
 This was such an absurd fancy of my mother's ; it 
 was too provoking. If I did not eat my breakfast, or 
 was less hungry than usual, she never noticed such
 
 124 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 tokens of fragility. But once George or his appetite 
 failed, she was all concern. Sometimes I thought 
 Lucy was the pet, and perhaps she gained more 
 demonstrations of affection from her winning, coaxing 
 ways ; but no one claimed more of my mother's 
 thoughtfulness than George. 
 
 Dick, in his attention to the pups, had disregarded 
 himself, and Aunt Rachel was the first to spy a rent 
 in his knickerbockers. 
 
 " Did nurse send you down that way ?" she de- 
 manded. " I'm positive she did not. Where have 
 you been since she dressed you ?" 
 
 " I caught somewhere on a hasp," returned Dick 
 buoyantly. " But I'm all right it didn't hurt." 
 
 " Do you hear that, Richard ?" exclaimed aunt, ap- 
 pealing to my father now. " That boy is incorrigible ! 
 You don't know the task I have had with him. 
 His clothes are in tatters, and his skin like a sweep's 
 while you turn round, and as long as he's not killed 
 outright he thinks he is keeping clear of mischief." 
 
 " Come here, Dick, my boy," said my father, at- 
 tempting a frown. " This is a dark account I get of 
 you. You must be popped down in my 'black books' 
 forthwith." 
 
 " That's where he would like to be," I interposed 
 laughingly. "You couldn't give him a pleasanter 
 berth. The very colour would work a charm." 
 
 " He has a passion for ink, at all events," declaimed 
 Aunt Rachel indignantly. " I ask you just to look at
 
 COMING EVENTS. 125 
 
 the carpet and writing-table in the library, and you 
 will admit that, to your cost. But you all spoil him, 
 so it is no wonder he ruins things in return. You are 
 laughing at him this minute, Richard !" And aunt's 
 face flushed up to her cap-ribbons. 
 
 " I am going to be terribly strict," said my father, 
 sobering down. "This is the last morning, nay, 
 moment, of indulgence. We begin lessons after break- 
 fast. How have you got on with your arithmetic, 
 Dick ?" 
 
 The question set me trembling, for, unable to cope 
 with him on this ground, I had abandoned it with a 
 show of tactics, and entrenched myself in the safer 
 quarters of history and geography. 
 
 " You are very ignorant, Dick," I had said to him. 
 " I had no idea you knew so little of English. You 
 must begin at the very rudiments, I see." 
 
 But Dick was sharp in observation, if not in the 
 memory of dates and the measurement of the earth. 
 To my horror he broke out now in a loud voice : 
 
 " Ellie took my slate from me, father ; and it was 
 no good indeed working at it for her. She has no 
 more idea of fractions than George ; she doesn't even 
 know long division !" 
 
 At this awful account my father showed symptoms 
 of risibility again, and only his awe of Aunt Rachel 
 restrained him. 
 
 " Everything seems to be a joke," exclaimed that 
 lady angrily. " If you had been tied to this house for
 
 126 MY MO THER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 the last two months you wouldn't find it so, I can tell 
 you." 
 
 My mother, who generally came to the rescue in a 
 discussion, thought it well to put in a gentle word or 
 two now. 
 
 " You have been very good, Rachel," she said, " and 
 both Richard and I feel really grateful to you. We 
 could not have gone so far away, with an easy mind, 
 had you not undertaken this charge for us." 
 
 Aunt's plumage was smooth again. A few concilia- 
 tory words go a long way with some people. To me, 
 however, nothing approving had been said, and I felt 
 slightly aggrieved. George's pallor, Dick's candour 
 all had conspired to pull me down and displace the 
 last remnants of my propped-up pride. However, 
 the sight of Lucy's soft, smiling face quickly dis- 
 sipated any rising vexation. The feeling could not 
 but be exchanged for one of thankfulness that the 
 little darling was safe, and that I had been spared 
 the pang of a lifelong compunction. 
 
 After breakfast my mother called me into the 
 library to look over some accounts with her, and in 
 fact to go through the preliminary forms before yield- 
 ing up my keys of office. These matters concluded 
 with tolerable satisfaction, I thought I had earned a 
 right to the confidence which had been so long with- 
 held from me. 
 
 " Now, mother, you will tell me why you left us ?" 
 I exclaimed earnestly. " I have been so wishing to
 
 COMING EVENTS. 127 
 
 know, and I suppose the cause is not a secret any 
 longer." 
 
 " Why should you suppose that, Ellie ?" 
 
 I hesitated. 
 
 " Well, I fancied once the business was all over, you 
 would not hide it from me. I am not exactly a child 
 now," I pursued ;- " I can hear of things without 
 speaking of them." 
 
 " That is well," returned my mother. " But curiosity 
 is always a mistake, Ellie. Anything I could tell you 
 would give you little pleasure. You would neither be 
 the better nor the happier for hearing it. In fact, I 
 feel that it is right still to avoid the subject. Your 
 father does not wish it spoken of." 
 
 I was more than disappointed ; something of dis- 
 pleasure came into my countenance. 
 
 " If it were one of the other children," I began. 
 " But I the eldest " 
 
 "Am I denying you a gratification an enjoy- 
 ment ?" interposed my mother. " You speak as if it 
 were so, but I have told you the simple fact. You 
 cannot judge of the matter I can." 
 
 " It is always a gratification to have a request 
 granted," sprang to my lips, but I repressed the un- 
 becoming utterance. I was silent instead. 
 
 " My dear child," continued my mother earnestly, 
 "you have only to believe me, and then you can find 
 nothing vexatious in my reticence. I have not given 
 you cause, I think, to doubt me hitherto."
 
 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 She drew me to her in saying this, and half- 
 ashamed of my dissatisfied air I made an effort to 
 master it. I raised my eyes to hers. 
 
 " You will tell me one thing at least," I exclaimed. 
 " My father was not ill that was not the cause ?" 
 
 " No, no, Ellie dear," she hastened to answer. 
 " What made you fancy that ?" 
 
 "Aunt Rachel said something about it," I ex- 
 plained. " But, indeed, I thought it was a mistake. 
 Your absence would have been too hard to bear had 
 I believed this." 
 
 She still had my hand in hers. 
 
 "To make your mind easy, I must give you one 
 assurance," she said. " This matter does not immedi- 
 ately concern your father or myself. It has relation 
 to your uncle George." 
 
 I uttered an ejaculation. 
 
 "And did you go so far away for his sake?" I 
 asked. " Did you leave us all for that ?" 
 
 " Don't look so indignant, Ellie," said my mother 
 smilingly, as she viewed the excitement in my face. 
 " The separation is over now ; you must forgive your 
 poor uncle, if he caused it. Besides, I believe I have 
 not been quite correct in my statement. One im- 
 portant item in the business was especially my 
 own." 
 
 " And did you succeed in this ?" I questioned. 
 " Did you accomplish what you wished ?" 
 
 " Yes, Ellie ;" and my mother sighed.
 
 COMING EVENTS. 129 
 
 This seemed a contradiction, and I was quick to 
 notice it. 
 
 "If you succeeded, you should be well-pleased," I 
 said. "Are you not so, or was there nothing really to 
 be gained ?" 
 
 "A great deal," she returned quietly. " Something 
 of undeniable value." 
 
 " Then why did you sigh, mother ?" 
 
 She looked at me, and there was a suffusion as of 
 gathering tears in her gaze. 
 
 " I have passed through much that is painful since 
 I left you," was the reply. " What I have longed for 
 for years came to me when the worth was gone. Do 
 you not know, my child, that we may get all that the 
 world can give us, and pay for it with a pang ; that 
 we never grasp an earthly good but with a feeling of 
 strange disappointment ? But there I must not 
 speak to you in a saddening way. You are too 
 young yet, perhaps, to feel this. And my words will 
 not bring the knowledge. We none of us believe 
 another till we have tested vanity for ourselves and 
 found how miserably it is wanting." 
 
 Just then my father entered, and the conversation 
 was interrupted. He came to ask me for Dick's slate 
 which I had been cruel enough to lock up. The 
 sound of his pencil travelling along it in terrible, 
 triumphant curves had been too much for my 
 endurance. I had deemed it better to condemn him 
 to inaction than myself to torture, and I had seized it 
 
 9
 
 130 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 accordingly. When I yielded it up now, Dick thought 
 fit to wave it in my face. 
 
 " There, Ellie !" he exclaimed ; " are you afraid of 
 it still ? The worse the noise, the better the work ; 
 but that didn't do you, you know." 
 
 " And rudeness does not do for you, my lad," 
 interposed my father. " I see your knowledge is but 
 small yet, since you are not aware of your ignorance. 
 Your sister here could teach you a good many things 
 humility, I hope, amongst the number." 
 
 I was not so sure of that. It was not exactly my 
 strong point; and I am afraid I would rather have 
 had proficiency or efficiency accredited to me. Hu- 
 mility is too divine in its origin to approve itself to 
 our poorer nature. Pride, strange to say, seems 
 linked close and fast with lowliness ; lowliness with 
 nobility. 
 
 My father had the boys with him in the library, 
 and my mother took Merylle presently into the 
 schoolroom to hear her play over her latest " piece." 
 This acquirement was due to my instruction ; but I 
 rather trembled for it when I heard the erratic 
 measure in which she started. Whether she were 
 nervous or giddy, the effect was much the same. A 
 rush, a crash, stumbling, stoppage such constituted 
 the leading features of the performance, and I felt 
 that my condemnation was proclaimed in every ring 
 of the keys. 
 
 My mother listened quietly to the conclusion.
 
 COMING EVENTS. 131 
 
 Then she laid her hands gently on the red, reckless 
 ones which had run such a delirious race. 
 
 " Merylle, you have not improved," she said. 
 " This is all wildness and confusion. I am afraid 
 you have not been practising carefully." 
 
 " It's too difficult," pouted Merylle, with a crushing 
 glance at me. "No one could play 'The Witches' 
 Frolic.' Ellie would put me to it." 
 
 I broke in with explanations, which merged so 
 naturally into accusations, that my mother had to 
 arrest both. 
 
 " Never mind," she said, " I am sure you did your 
 best, Ellen. If Merylle found the piece difficult, I 
 can well believe the task of teaching it was still more 
 so." 
 
 Though both father and mother had smoothed 
 down matters as considerately as they could for me, 
 my own sense of triumph was gone, and I could 
 almost have shed tears of vexation. 
 
 The entrance of Aunt Rachel fortunately arrested 
 this selfish weakness. In her presence I would not 
 own myself conquered, and, turning to the piano, I 
 rearranged the ruffled pages of " The Witches' Frolic" 
 with an assured air. 
 
 " Merylle, you were nervous," I said ; " you must 
 have been. You will play it steadier again." 
 
 " I hope she will never play it again," was Aunt 
 Rachel's comment. " You don't know, Eleanor, what 
 I have suffered with that piece !" 
 
 92
 
 132 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 She announced then her intention of leaving on the 
 following day ; and though my mother was courteous 
 and hospitable, aunt's resolve remained unshaken. 
 
 " You are very good to wish me to have a little 
 quiet and ease now," she said to my mother. " But 
 till my nerves recover in a measure, I couldn't appre- 
 ciate either. Some other time, when the boys are 
 older, and Merylle has done her practising, I shall be 
 glad to come to you." 
 
 Later on that day a mounted groom brought a 
 note for my mother, which she just glanced at and 
 handed on to my father. It contained an invitation 
 to a dinner-party at the house of one of our leading 
 county families, and my mother wished at first to 
 refuse. My father, however, exchanged a few words 
 with her in a low voice, and she consented then with a 
 sigh. 
 
 She looked to me paler and more anxious since her 
 return, and when I heard her settling for an early 
 visit to Uncle George, I conjectured that something 
 was weighing on her mind. 
 
 Aunt Rachel came down the next morning in her 
 bonnet. She had fixed to take her departure by the 
 ten o'clock train, and the carriage was ordered round 
 immediately after breakfast. 
 
 The boys had not been told of the touching fare- 
 well which was in store for them, and Dick eyed her 
 in amaze. 
 
 " What has Aunt Rachel her bonnet on for ?" he
 
 COMING EVENTS. 133 
 
 demanded. " She has nothing to do now. Her cap 
 would stay steady enough." 
 
 I must say I scarcely wondered at the heroic com- 
 posure with which she bore the impending separation. 
 The boys were terrible to deal with. Dick's sharp- 
 ness, George's dulness, were both equally trying. 
 Aunt took a solemn farewell of me. 
 
 " Good-bye, Ellen," she said. " You did your best, 
 perhaps. But there was too much left upon me. I 
 doubt if I shall ever recover it !" 
 
 As she looked rather stouter and more rubicund 
 than usual in tendering the statement, it carried con- 
 siderable weight with it. But it was of a very obvious 
 kind too palpable to be premonitory. / really had 
 grown thin, and might have talked more reasonably 
 of injury to the system. Much as I had always ob- 
 jected to Merylle's circular chubbiness, I quite envied 
 it now. There was a balance about it which must 
 have kept her confident. I felt that I might be afloat 
 any moment like "The Light Princess" if I gave too 
 great an escape to buoyancy. 
 
 My father accompanied Aunt Rachel to the train, 
 and when they had left my mother went up to her own 
 room. Having some message to give, I followed her 
 presently, and found her seated before the dressing- 
 table in the act of opening an exquisitely carved 
 casket in ebony. Seeing me, she put it aside hastily, 
 and though my curiosity was roused, I did not venture 
 to ask any question. My mother's confidence was
 
 134 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 always given unsought, and it was rather a vain 
 attempt to try to elicit it. Whenever there was any- 
 thing which it was well for me to know I was taken 
 at once into consultation ; but should the matter be 
 one for reserve, my inquisitiveness was checked by 
 a decisiveness which it would have been vain to 
 combat.
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 THE DIAMONDS. 
 
 " Think naught a trifle, though it small appear ; 
 Small sands the mountain, moments make the year, 
 And trifles life." 
 
 YOUNG. 
 
 THE delights of turmoil and teaching were not over 
 for me yet. The next day my father and mother set 
 out together on a visit to Uncle George, and replaced 
 me in my position of trust. There was neither 
 novelty, excitement, nor expectation connected with 
 it now, and it was duty only which led me to acquiesce 
 in the arrangement. 
 
 Fred still went to Mr. Locke in the mornings, and 
 was to continue under his tuition for some time longer, 
 so I was relieved of his presence at an early hour. 
 My mother sent an invitation by him to the curate, 
 asking him to lunch with us the same day at two 
 o'clock. She and my father expected to be home 
 then, and there was no reason to doubt their punctual 
 return, if the demands of nature continued in force.
 
 1 36 MY MO THER'S DIA MONDS. 
 
 Unless some astounding revolution had taken place 
 in the mind or menage of uncle, they would not be 
 likely to get much in the way of refreshment at the 
 Manor-House. 
 
 The morning passed over in tolerable quietude, and 
 punctually as the clock struck two Fred came burst- 
 ing into the house, followed at a more correct pace by 
 Mr. Locke. 
 
 I had not seen the latter gentleman since the even- 
 ing of my parents' return and Lucy's recovery, and I 
 met him with considerable warmth. His kindness 
 then could not easily be forgotten, and I felt that it 
 was possibly to his prompitude and energy that I 
 owed my relief from anxiety at such a critical moment 
 of suspense. I liked Mr. Locke, despite of Aunt 
 Rachel's warning apostrophe; and as I saw nothing 
 either wrong or hazardous in the state of feeling, I 
 was not solicitous to check it. 
 
 " You still find me mistress in a measure," I ex- 
 claimed now, bringing him into the drawing-room. 
 " The heads of the household are out driving, and 
 have not returned. But we expect them back every 
 minute. You know my father, I think, Mr. Locke ; 
 but I don't believe you have met my mother yet ?" 
 
 " No, I have not had that pleasure," he said, and 
 added that he was very anxious to make her acquaint- 
 ance, from a letter he had received from her. 
 
 " About Fred ?" I asked. 
 
 " Yes," he acquiesced. " It was one which only a
 
 THE DIAMONDS. 137 
 
 mother could write, and that one a true and tender 
 mother. You must be happy indeed to have her 
 home with you again." 
 
 A certain glistening of my eyes told this, I think, 
 without a word, and the remark was more affirmatory 
 than questioning. 
 
 Fred had left us to look after some outdoor pets, 
 but Lucy had crept close on my footsteps, and stole 
 up to me now to put her hand in mine. 
 
 " Lucy, my child, go over to Mr. Locke," I said. 
 " I don't think you ever thanked him properly for 
 taking you out of the big barn." 
 
 " Fred would have found me," rejoined the little 
 puss, with scant courtesy. " He was just coming to 
 me. He said he was." 
 
 "So much for the gratitude of the world !" laughed 
 Mr. Locke. " Till a thing is gained and granted, we 
 cry out and beseech. But it is the good we want 
 not the giver of it. You made a very touching appeal 
 to me through the door that evening, Miss Lucy, and 
 gave me an uncommonly tight clasp of your arms 
 when I first caught you up." 
 
 " Yes, I am sure of that," I exclaimed, with a pinch 
 of her pink cheek. " And you are a heartless little 
 creature to forget so soon. Fred would not have had 
 you in time to meet mamma and what would you 
 have done then ?" 
 
 At this moment Dick burst into the room. 
 
 "There's not a sign of the carnage!" he cried,
 
 1 58 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 " and we are all wild with hunger. George is sitting 
 on the door-step with a green apple." 
 
 " He mustn't have that," I exclaimed. "They say 
 he doesn't look well, and is it any wonder if he feeds 
 like this ?" 
 
 Thereupon I rushed out, and found him pallid and 
 placid as ever, planted as Dick had stated, and with 
 the sickly fruit grasped between both hands. There 
 was an impress of his teeth in it already, in an ominous 
 circlet, and I jerked it away from him indignantly. 
 
 " George, you are hopeless," " I said. " Where did 
 you get that horrid thing, and how dare you be eating 
 it in secret ?" 
 
 " Come, you must let him off on one count, Miss 
 Wynham. There is nothing very hidden about the 
 process," interposed Mr. Locke, with a smile. 
 
 He had followed me under the compulsory leading 
 of Lucy, who had at last given him her hand in ex- 
 pression of thanks, and had drawn him towards the 
 hall. At the mention of the apple she was curious as 
 Eve. 
 
 " Well, yes, he is certainly on an open platform, 
 Mr. Locke," I admitted. " But he was out of my 
 sight. His mother is too indulgent he knows that." 
 
 Just then the sound of wheels was heard, and the 
 carriage came speedily into sight. George, of course, 
 was in tears when the party alighted from it ; and I 
 was so angry with him for putting in such an appear- 
 ance that I could have shaken him well.
 
 THE DIAMONDS. 139 
 
 Luncheon over, my father took Mr. Locke out for 
 a walk, and I did not see him again. My mother had 
 been rather silent during the repast, but I knew from 
 the smile with which she greeted the curate and ad- 
 dressed him afterwards, that her reserve was due only 
 to preoccupation of the thoughts, and that she was 
 attracted already by the frank kindliness of his coun- 
 tenance. I asked her about the visit to Uncle George, 
 but she told me little. She said he did not look well, 
 and she seemed uneasy respecting him. Whatever he 
 had been to her, I knew that my mother was tenderly 
 attached to this, her only brother. Indeed she had 
 admitted so much in her partial explanation of the 
 cause of her voyage to New York. It had been no 
 light thing to leave her home and children for so long, 
 and nothing but a very compelling motive could have 
 led to the step. 
 
 A few days passed over, and the night arrived for 
 the dinner-party to which my father and mother were 
 invited. The latter went up to dress early, as they 
 had to drive some considerable distance to the house 
 where it was given. When she had been about half- 
 an-hour in her room, I knocked at the door as usual, 
 claiming admission to see her in her evening dress. 
 From the time I was a little child I had always en- 
 joyed this sight. 
 
 My mother had a beautiful velvet gown, which was 
 my especial pride and admiration. I was never tired 
 of gazing at her when she was arrayed in this. Her
 
 140 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS, 
 
 sweet hazel eyes, glittering hair, and fair skin showed 
 to the greatest advantage when the rich folds of the 
 velvet hung about her, while the dark hue of her 
 bodice was only relieved at the neck and arms by 
 some exquisite old lace. 
 
 She wore but few ornaments, and I sometimes 
 wondered at this, for my mother was an earl's grand- 
 child, the only daughter of his only daughter, Lady 
 Eleanor, who married a Mr. Merlin, contrary to her 
 father's wish. I had heard it said that her chief 
 fortune was in her jewels, which came to her as an 
 heirloom, and could not be held back. 
 
 My first nurse was a very old woman, who had be- 
 longed to the earl's household ; and many a story she 
 told me in the winter evenings, over the fire, of the 
 beauty of my maternal grandmother, and the love- 
 match she made, despite of the many higher wooers 
 who sued for her hand. 
 
 In response to my tap at the door, my mother now 
 said, " Come in/' and I entered at once. I paused on 
 the threshold, gazed earnestly forwards, then uttered 
 a cry of delight. My mother's dressing-room was 
 hung with blue ; the walls, curtains, the muslin of the 
 toilet-table all were of the same azure hue, and, 
 framed in by the becoming drapery, she stood now a 
 dazzling, almost regal, figure before me. 
 
 She had on her velvet dress, but this had been too 
 often admired to elicit the present start of astonish- 
 ment. There was a new and unexpected brilliancy
 
 THE DIAMONDS. 141 
 
 in her aspect. Her bright golden hair was enwreathed 
 with diamonds, on her neck there was a glittering 
 circlet of the same priceless gems, and she wore 
 round each arm a bracelet of different workmanship, 
 but studded likewise with brilliants so large and pure 
 that they reflected rainbow-like colours with every 
 motion of her form. 
 
 An instant's hesitation, and I darted towards her 
 excitedly. 
 
 " Where did you get them ?" I cried. " Mother, 
 mother ! Why did you never wear them before ?" 
 
 She smiled. 
 
 " Do they look too gorgeous, Ellie ?" she asked. 
 " They were my mother's diamonds. But what she, 
 as Lady Eleanor, might fittingly display, may be out 
 of place on me." 
 
 "Out of place!" I cried. "You never looked so 
 well before. You are just as you ought to be 
 lovely, queenlike !" And I kissed her with a sudden 
 delight. 
 
 There was a brightness in her eyes which was 
 almost of pleasure then. 
 
 " I knew you would admire them, Ellie, at all 
 events," she said. " I have not been disappointed 
 there." 
 
 " But surely they must satisfy you in every way ?" 
 I exclaimed. " How could it be otherwise ? I 
 never saw anything so grand. The only wonder is 
 how you could have kept them hidden away so
 
 j 42 MY MO THEKS DIAMONDS, 
 
 long. They must have come to you ages ago. My 
 grandmother is dead a great many years is she 
 not ?" 
 
 " Yes, just before you were born. You remember 
 your old nurse, Essie ? She had been her own maid, 
 and was with her in her last illness. She came to me 
 then, and I think you were four years old before we 
 parted with her, and placed her in the little cottage 
 at Ivy wood." 
 
 " I remember Essie well," I said. " And she told 
 me about some grand jewels which were in the 
 family. I often wondered what you had done with 
 them." 
 
 " Well, you see their magnificence at last, Ellie," 
 returned my mother. "And as they will come to 
 you, I hope, you must learn to estimate their value 
 aright." 
 
 "They are very precious, then ?" I inquired. 
 
 " Well, yes, they have a worth which I cannot fully 
 explain to you now," was the reply. " If I tell you 
 that they were lost for years, and that I have only 
 just recovered them, you will understand as much as 
 I have time to say with the carriage waiting ;" and 
 with another little smile and a parting kiss of good- 
 bye, she hastened to respond to a call from my 
 father. 
 
 When they had driven off, I began to ponder on 
 the little that had been told me, and by a very 
 natural process of reasoning I arrived at the conclu-
 
 THE DIAMONDS. 143 
 
 sion that the visit to America had some connection 
 with the diamonds, and that whatever had become of 
 them during an interim of years they were now, for 
 the first time, in my mother's possession. 
 
 The ebony casket I had seen with her the preced- 
 ing day was lying open on the dressing-table, and I 
 gazed at it curiously. It was lined with rose-coloured 
 velvet, and I could discover the soft cushioned recess 
 in which each of the glittering ornaments had rested. 
 I suppose the love of what is radiant is naturally im- 
 planted in us, and is intended to reach its highest 
 significance in the unveiled splendour which is to 
 come. The similitudes used to prefigure " The Holy 
 City" address themselves to this ideal of the human 
 mind, and I could not, therefore, altogether blame 
 myself if this recent vision of my mother's diamonds 
 laid hold somewhat hauntingly of my thoughts. 
 
 That they were a family possession, coming to us 
 by aristocratic descent, gave them an added precious- 
 ness in my eyes, and I was filled with a questionable 
 pride in picturing to myself how my mother would 
 shine unrivalled that evening both in person and 
 adornments. I had just sense enough to have little 
 vanity on my own account, and this was the one 
 redeeming point amid many follies and vagaries of 
 imagination. 
 
 I was still in the dressing-room when Merylle 
 burst impetuously in. She had been out for a race 
 with Fred, and had forgotten time and everything
 
 144 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 else of sterling reality in the gambols and gaiety she 
 loved. 
 
 " Where is mamma ?" she exclaimed impatiently, 
 as she glanced round the blue dressing-room. " I 
 wanted to see her dressed. It's not possible she is 
 gone ?" 
 
 " She ought to have waited for you, I suppose ?" 
 was my rejoinder. " Do you know that it is just six 
 o'clock, and the tea-bell is going to ring ?" 
 
 " I was only round the back lane with Fred, hunting 
 for blackberries," said Merylle. " You might have 
 called me What had she on to-night ?" 
 
 " Her black velvet," I said, and added no further 
 description. 
 
 I was determined that the full light of the diamonds 
 and their antecedents should not flash on her through 
 any admission of mine. It was possible I was the 
 only one of the children to be favoured with a view 
 of them, and even for me the veil of mystery that 
 surrounded them had not wholly been lifted. I re- 
 membered that my mother had sent Lucy out to the 
 garden with the nurse when she went up to dress, and 
 it seemed very probable that she wished for the 
 present to avoid the eager questioning of the younger 
 ones respecting a matter which could not fully be 
 explained. 
 
 A few weeks went by, and one morning my mother 
 received a letter by the early post which disturbed 
 her greatly. But the excitement she showed was
 
 THE DIAMONDS. 145 
 
 evidently of a pleasurable nature, for her eyes bright- 
 ened, and a sort of hopeful light passed across the 
 delicate colouring of her face. I, with my rosy, 
 healthy face, almost envied my mother and Lucy 
 the soft, peach-like bloom which seemed to come to 
 them as another heirloom from the lovely Lady 
 Eleanor, and her high-born home and ancestors. 
 
 When the letter had been read it was passed hastily 
 to my father, and I caught the whispered comment : 
 
 "There is hope yet You see there is hope, 
 
 Richard." 
 
 The contents were perused more leisurely now ; 
 but when they were finished, my father's countenance 
 cleared also. 
 
 " If this be so, all may indeed be well," he mur- 
 mured. " It would be a happy ending to a lifelong 
 anxiety. You must take courage now, Eleanor." 
 
 The envelope of the -letter chanced to lie on the 
 table rather near me, and I saw that it bore a foreign 
 stamp and post-mark. I was tolerably curious on 
 the subject/but did not venture to ask any questions, 
 for the all-sufficient reason that the answers would 
 not have been directed to the gratification of inquisi- 
 tiveness. 
 
 My heart bounded, however, with a certain excite- 
 ment when my mother informed me after breakfast 
 that she was going to see Uncle George, and that I 
 might accompany her if I wished. 
 
 There was not much doubt about the inclination in 
 
 10
 
 146 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 a case of the kind ; and a holiday having been given 
 to Merylle and Lucy, I prepared myself promptly for 
 the drive. My father was to remain at home, and the 
 boys were summoned to him as usual in the study. 
 
 " I say, Nell, what's in the wind now ?" exclaimed 
 Fred, as he met me looking fussy and important in 
 the hall. "Is there to be a 'turn out' at the old 
 Manor-House that you are so eager to rush off to 
 it ? I should have thought a visit to Uncle George 
 might have been taken uncommon cool." 
 
 " There has been a turn out for you, at all events, 
 Master Fred," I retorted. " That is enough for you 
 to know." 
 
 " Oh, a secret eh ?" he broke in, with a laugh. 
 " Well, you girls beat for curiosity. I wouldn't give 
 a snap of my finger for all you'll ever root out of that 
 fusty old place." 
 
 " Sour grapes !" I said, as he bounded down the 
 steps with his satchel on his shoulder. He was just 
 starting for Mr. Locke's, but he turned when he had 
 gone a step or two. 
 
 " Any message, Nell ?" he asked. " Any private 
 word for the ' pastor and master ?' " 
 
 There was a mischievous gleam in his eyes, so I 
 answered promptly : 
 
 " Yes ; tell him to keep you well down, to set you 
 double tasks, and not to spare you in any way on my 
 account." 
 
 Fred gave a long whistle, and was soon out of
 
 THE DIAMONDS. 147 
 
 reach of messages like these. It was terribly trying 
 to have a brother of his age, and one, moreover, 
 who was vowed to the awful vocation of a tease. I 
 was wise enough to pay as little heed to him as 
 might be, and never to admit the possibility of sense 
 on his side; but such a course reduced our intercourse 
 to a very unsatisfactory basis. He could be nothing 
 of a help to me scarcely even a companion under 
 circumstances like these. 
 
 During the drive to S my mother spoke on in- 
 different subjects, but made no special allusion to 
 Uncle George, or her motive for paying him this early 
 visit. Just, however, as we had reached the Manor- 
 House, she leant towards me and said earnestly : 
 
 " Ellie, I want you to be very kind and loving with 
 your uncle to-day. He has not been. strong lately, 
 and his health makes him irritable. But I believe he 
 is really fond of you, and would like to see some 
 affection on your side." 
 
 " But, mother, how was I to know this ?" I ex- 
 claimed. " He only finds fault when I see him. I 
 am afraid almost to glance at him ; my very looks 
 seem to be wrong." 
 
 " Naturally, my child, when there is fear in them. 
 A frank, happy smile would work very different effect. 
 The most stern heart opens to that. Do you not know 
 that nothing wins love like trust and confidingness ? 
 It is this which makes the little one so dear to its 
 parent." 
 
 10 2
 
 1 48 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 " But a constrained smile would be worse than 
 none, mother. To try and show what I did not feel 
 might be possible, but it would be worthless. How 
 am I to feel as you and he wish ? That is what I 
 want to know." 
 
 " I cannot explain this to you, Ellie, if there is no 
 responsive chord in your own breast, which answers 
 to another's need. You see the desolate life which 
 your uncle is living. A great grief has befallen him 
 in his plans and hopes. I do not say he ought not to 
 have battled against this, and shown his faith in a 
 higher good than earthly weal. But we, on our part, 
 may do something yet to help towards this end. We 
 may let him feel that tenderness and truth are not 
 banished from the world because they failed him 
 once. If we can only move him from a hard incredu- 
 lity, the springs of nature may become unlocked, and 
 he may forget all that he has lost in the peace of for- 
 giveness. As long as the one harsh element of im- 
 placability lingers in the heart, joy is shut out from it. 
 It can neither know the light of Heaven upon the 
 outer pathway nor in the inner life. There is the 
 same dread shadow everywhere the ghost of an ex- 
 tinguished love. To kill it in our own breast is to 
 cause a double dearth. What we no longer give we no 
 longer receive. We have hidden away lovingkindness 
 from above." 
 
 I had listened to her, but in ignorance still of the 
 story of Uncle George's life, I scarcely apprehended
 
 THE DIAMONDS. 149 
 
 all her meaning. When she had ceased speaking I 
 was full of an eager thought of my own. 
 
 " Mother," I exclaimed rather irrelevantly, " why 
 will Uncle George never see Fred ?" 
 
 The gate at which we had already rung was opened 
 at this instant by Willis. 
 
 " I cannot tell you now, Kllie," she said in a whisper. 
 " Don't ask any further questions, but be as pleasant 
 with your uncle as you can." 
 
 I was not fated, however, on this day to have 
 opportunity for turning her gentle suggestion to 
 account. 
 
 Willis's face looked longer than ever as he appeared 
 in the aperture, and his whole person more dark and 
 depressed. He waved his hand at us both with a 
 dismissive gesture, and made no attempt to give way 
 for our entrance. 
 
 " What is wrong, Willis ?" inquired my mother 
 anxiously. " Is your master worse ?" 
 
 " He couldn't be that, ma'am," he said. " Not more 
 bad than you left him the other day. But he's no 
 better." 
 
 The man presumed on his long services and his 
 privileged state as comptroller of the household 
 within to constitute himself a sort of guardian of his 
 master. He kept a Cerberus-like watch over his 
 visitors and movements, and admitted no one to him 
 unless he considered it well. 
 
 It appeared that Uncle George had not left his
 
 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 room this morning. Consequently it was only by 
 dint of repeated solicitation that even my mother 
 gained access to his presence. As for me, I was shut 
 out resolutely at once. Willis decreed that to allow 
 my very foot inside the portal might be going a step 
 too far, and he pointed grimly to the garden-walks 
 and their grey surface of gravel as a befitting field of 
 recreation. 
 
 Left here for almost half an hour, I began to feel 
 the sombre influence of the place creeping dismally 
 over me. There was no sound from the house, and 
 the silence and loneliness to which I was so unac- 
 customed grew absolutely oppressive. Hitherto in 
 my pacings I had kept in view of the old domicile, 
 but finally I turned down a side pathway which led 
 more into the intricacies of the garden. This track 
 was narrow, moss-overgrown, and had evidently fallen 
 into disuse. Just around the house there was an 
 attempt at order, but here all pointed from a melan- 
 choly present to a far-away past when trees had been 
 shrubs, and the first bloom of youth and spring-time 
 wove smiles and flowers along the path. There were 
 traces of a little garden, a rockery, a rustic seat, and 
 other devices of a child's hand. Whose was it which 
 had been at work here, and wherefore was an air of 
 deepest mournfulness enwrought with every token of 
 its touch ? 
 
 I paused suddenly before a closed door. It seemed 
 to lead to some root-house or grotto, and was green
 
 THE DIAMONDS. 151 
 
 with age, while a veil of ivy and glossy evergreens 
 fell thickly over the roof and upper portion of the 
 entrance. 
 
 Strange to say, I had never been allowed to play 
 or wander in these grounds when a child. Thus 
 nothing could be remembered or had been noted 
 before. Our visits to the Manor- House were almost 
 always formed on the same rigid model : an intro- 
 duction to the library, an inspection by Uncle George, 
 and a steady retrogression of our steps to the carriage. 
 Once only I had been sent upstairs to run about in 
 the long corridor while my mother spoke alone with 
 uncle ; and in Fred's case he had been permitted an 
 oscasional climb of the cherry-tree when his presence 
 was becoming visibly distasteful indoors. 
 
 I stood and gazed now, and as I did so I became 
 aware that something was written on the portal. 
 Letters had been cut in the wood-work and the 
 grooves painted in deep red. They ran along the top 
 margin of the door, so that the overhanging foliage 
 almost concealed them now. But raising a branch of 
 ivy with one hand, I bent closer, and read the single 
 sentence : 
 
 "NEVER TO BE OPENED." 
 
 I can't tell what strange shudder ran through me 
 at the moment. It was not caused by the ominous 
 inscription, but by a sort of prescient feeling that I 
 touched here on the secret of Uncle George's life.
 
 152 My MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 Though I was curious I was overawed as well. No 
 wish sprang to mind to pass the threshold of that 
 closed door. Whatever lay within I would not have 
 dared to raise the double veil with which the touch of 
 Nature and some harsher hand had shrouded the 
 spot. 
 
 I was turning away when I was attracted by a 
 beautiful flowering shrub at the side of the grotto. 
 The blossoms were of a rich crimson hue, and 
 drooped luxuriantly amid the shining green of the 
 leaves. I had never seen it before, and leaving the 
 path, I stepped in amongst the underwood to ex- 
 amine it more closely. It seemed some foreign 
 species, and, wishing to know the name, I plucked a 
 little bit to show to my mother. 
 
 I noted then that the planting all around the spot 
 was of a choice and varied kind, as if it had engaged 
 the special care of some one who had chosen and 
 frequented the retreat. There was a sort of lattice- 
 paned window high up in the summer-house, and in- 
 voluntarily I drew a little nearer to the latter. In 
 doing so, I came upon the trunk of an alder-tree in 
 fact it formed the back or central piece of the grotto, 
 which had been built out from this foundation. 
 
 Here, again, curiosity was aroused. My quick eye 
 discovered letters cut in the bark, but they were less 
 distinct than the chill, prohibitory sentence traced 
 on the front portal, and some school-boy's penknife 
 had evidently been the one tool employed in the
 
 THE DIAMONDS. 153 
 
 work. Two words were what I made out, with just 
 a date underneath. They were these : " Fred's 
 House." 
 
 As I read them I grew bewildered, and repeated 
 them over and over in questioning intonation. Who 
 was this Fred of whom I had never heard ? and how 
 came his name, and his name only, to speak out of 
 the silence of the past ? It was not my own brother 
 Fred ; the added date pointed to a time when his 
 days of mirth and mischief were yet in the future. I 
 had never known that Uncle George had a son. 
 Indeed, from some answers to questions I put once to 
 the servants, I had understood that he had no child, 
 and that he had lost his wife within a year of their 
 marriage. 
 
 As I still paused and pondered I heard myself 
 called. I gave quite a tremulous start at the sound. 
 The voice was Willis's, and I sprang hastily from the 
 spot. 
 
 " Where have you been to, Miss Ellen ?" he asked, 
 as I came in sight from the winding of the shrub- 
 bery walk. " Do you know that I have been calling 
 you for the last ten minutes ?" 
 
 " Is my mother ready ?" I exclaimed. " Has she 
 been waiting for me ?" 
 
 No answer was needed, for another step brought 
 me in view of the house, and I saw her standing on 
 the gravel in front. 
 
 She was too full of thoughts of her own to direct
 
 154 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 especial inquiries on my doings, and seated side by 
 side together in the carriage we were both unusually 
 absent on the drive back. 
 
 I, for my part, was only waiting and watching for 
 an opportunity to speak and question, but till such 
 was gained it seemed better wisdom to be silent. To 
 touch on a subject which might prove forbidden 
 ground would be rash at present, and might debar 
 me from a future and more assured approach to it.
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 IGNORANCE IS BLISS. 
 
 " Nothing is so certain to happen as the unforeseen." 
 
 " Les malheurs des malheurs sont ceux qui n'arrivent jamais." 
 
 " WHAT a shocking noise !" exclaimed my father, 
 coming suddenly into the breakfast-room. 
 
 Since his return the children were still allowed to 
 enjoy the first repast of the day with the heads of the 
 household, though I must say they abused the privi- 
 lege terribly. They were generally down some time 
 before their parents' appearance, and turned the 
 waiting interim to account by antics and exercises 
 which sharpened their appetites, if not their wits. 
 
 Fred might have been supposed to rise superior to 
 such pastimes, but he had too rare a field at like 
 moments for the exercise of his special talents to 
 slight the occasion. 
 
 Dick, in clean garments, was irresistibly enticing. 
 He was always rather nice to tease ; but when the 
 freshness of a morning toilet enhanced his natural
 
 I3 6 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 advantages, and a hold could be laid firmly and fear- 
 lessly upon his small person, Fred, at least, could not 
 abstain from divers little attentions. To trip him up, 
 to give him an unexpected impetus in a hazardous 
 direction, offered temptations which he scarcely cared 
 to resist. Dick was good-humoured, rather of the 
 gutta-percha type of construction, and always had a 
 safe rebound to position again, no matter how reck- 
 lessly he was treated. 
 
 On the present morning, however, he had been 
 pitched, as ill-luck would have it, right upon George 
 and a slice of bread and butter. The latter, hugged 
 to the little wretch's heart, had suffered crumbling 
 and collapse, and he broke into a wail forthwith. At 
 this critical juncture my father entered. Dick natur- 
 ally had acquired some butter in the collision, and 
 was beaming with delight. This opening smear of 
 the day was due to Fred, and no one could blame 
 him if others followed. 
 
 My father, however, was more occupied with 
 George's howls than Dick's smiles, and called all to 
 order with an unwonted sternness. 
 
 "You have that child always in a roar," he said. 
 " What is the cause of this ?" 
 
 " It's Fred's fault," said Merylle glibly. " He tilted 
 Dick up against him." 
 
 She had just had a passage-of-arms with Master 
 Fred herself, and had not forgiven him a peculiarly 
 envenomed pinch.
 
 IGNORANCE IS BLISS. 157 
 
 "And hurt him eh?" asked my father, drawing 
 George towards his knee. 
 
 " Not a bit of it, sir," said Fred boldly. " He had 
 a shield in front a thick cut of bread and butler." 
 
 " It's all gone now," murmured George ; and his 
 eyes followed pitifully the scattered fragments which 
 were on the floor, his pinafore everywhere, in fact, 
 but in the safe receptacle he had designed for them. 
 
 He was not appeased till my mother had him 
 mounted on his stool close by her side, and had plied 
 him with a piece of muffin from her own plate. 
 
 We were still in the midst of breakfast when Fred 
 gave a loud whistle, and almost sprang from his seat. 
 He was placed opposite to the window, and had been 
 the first to see what we all now heard a carriage 
 approaching on the gravel sweep. No one was ex- 
 pected, and an arrival at this hour was in itself a 
 surprise. But a greater supervened. 
 
 Dick, ready and rapid, was at the window in a 
 trice. A caper of astonishment followed, but then 
 his fist clenched, and he made a hideous, almost 
 menacing face. 
 
 " It's Aunt Rachel !" he said, and we all gave a 
 sort of scream at the words. 
 
 Even my mother looked aghast. Hospitality was 
 overpowered by apprehension. She rose hastily from 
 her seat. 
 
 " It can't be," she exclaimed. " What could bring 
 her again ?"
 
 158 M Y MO THERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 " And she's got six boxes," roared Dick, " and a lot 
 of bags inside. Do come and look, Ellie." 
 
 "Worse and worse!" interposed Fred. "She'll 
 pitch her tent here for ever now. Mother, don't let 
 her in !" 
 
 My father had already hurried out to the portico, 
 so we were less reticent in our speech than dutifulness 
 might have demanded. 
 
 " I can't understand this," pursued my mother 
 anxiously. " I asked her to stay longer before she 
 left us ; but not only did she refuse this, but she hinted 
 that we should not see her for years again." 
 
 " She has taken a longing fit for music," laughed 
 Fred. " Merylle, run off to the piano, and give her a 
 welcome at once. Don't spare the strings ; we'll 
 cobble them up again." 
 
 At this moment there was a rustle and a bustle in 
 the hall, and we knew that aunt had entered. But 
 farther than the doorway she was not free as yet to 
 advance. She had taken a hired vehicle from the 
 station, and her ideas of miles and money were so 
 utterly opposed to those of the driver that we seemed 
 likely to have him quartered upon us as well. He 
 pushed his way into the very house, and made Aunt 
 Rachel recoil before his crimsoning face ere she yielded 
 up one jot of her ground. My father tried vainly 
 to interfere. Aunt Rachel was not exactly so fond 
 of her coins as afraid of cheatery, and her own bargain 
 must be made, and none other.
 
 IGNORANCE IS BLISS. 159 
 
 Meanwhile the man had revenge in his hands. 
 Aunt's boxes were taken down one by one, and their 
 numbers and weight emphasised by such resounding 
 crashes on the doorstep that it seemed as if the very 
 stone must fly to pieces. Aunt bore it all till her best 
 bonnet was imperilled ; but at this crisis she woke 
 up to a sense of a newly-threatened loss. 
 
 "That'll do that'll do!" she cried wrathfully. 
 " You'll smash everything to atoms. Take what you 
 want rob me as you please ; but I'll have you up in 
 the courts for it yet." 
 
 " Give the man his money, Rachel," implored my 
 father. " I'll settle it with you again." 
 
 " Settle him again, I hope you mean ? The country 
 is in a nice state. We might as well have highway- 
 men upon the road." 
 
 Nevertheless the loosening of her bonnet-box had 
 opened her purse-strings, and the man finally drove 
 off with a grin and chuckle. The delight of victory 
 always adds a peculiar zest to the more sterling 
 gains we may have carried off in a contest, and 
 I think in a matter of this kind, where one has 
 generally to yield in the end, it might be as well 
 to reduce the triumph of our opponent by placid 
 acquiescence. 
 
 Aunt Rachel was terribly flushed when my mother 
 came forward at last to greet her. 
 
 " I wish I had telegraphed !" was her first ejacula- 
 tion. " It would have cost me a shilling, but saved
 
 160 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 me this scene. My nerves are not strong enough for 
 such struggles." 
 
 " But why did you not even write ?" inquired my 
 mother timidly. 
 
 She feared to say more to ask the cause, or con- 
 templated length of the visit. Aunt's outraged dignity 
 would have been up at once at a word. 
 
 " I knew nothing of the start myself till last night," 
 was the reply. " I had a letter from London by the 
 evening post. The Countess Graukopf has just arrived 
 from Germany. I met her, you know, once at 
 Brighton. She wants me to join her there again, or 
 rather I am to be with her in London early to-morrow, 
 and we travel down together. I thought I would take 
 a day here to rest by the way, and get my summer-hat 
 which I forgot at the back of the wardrobe. It may 
 be useful at the seaside." 
 
 "You must have been off betimes, this morning," 
 interposed my father. 
 
 " At five o'clock. My maid sat up all night to pack. 
 When a thing is to be done I like to do it well." 
 
 The beauty and burden of the work seemed to have 
 rested here upon the maid ; but aunt was satisfied, 
 and that was a great deal. 
 
 I had caught sight of Dick cutting private capers 
 at the announcement of her short stay. Aunt, how- 
 ever, seemed pleased at the exuberance of his spirits, 
 and the manifest delight of his countenance. 
 
 " I do believe that boy is overjoyed to see me," she
 
 IGNORANCE IS BLISS. 161 
 
 exclaimed. " I did not think he had so much heart 
 about him. Come here, Dick." 
 
 She plunged her hand in her pocket as she spoke. 
 But at this motion Dick was forestalled. George 
 was the first to respond. Aunt had once given him 
 a sticky lollypop which I believe had adhered to her 
 dress for about a century, and this gift lived grate- 
 fully in his memory. Nothing, however, was pro- 
 duced now from her research but a pair of very 
 dubious kid gloves, and George's eyes filled at the 
 sight. The disappointment was cruel, and even I 
 felt for him in a degree. 
 
 " I ought to have something," pursued aunt, putting 
 back the gloves with a pat, and that statement was 
 true enough. 
 
 "Did you drop it?" murmured George, trying to 
 control his voice. But the question might be em- 
 barrassing, and my mother pulled him forcibly away. 
 
 " Run back to your breakfast, George," she said. 
 " And you, Rachel, won't you come in and have some 
 refreshment after your early start ?" 
 
 Aunt did not demur. Though she had nothing to 
 offer others, she would not deprive them of the plea- 
 sures of hospitality. She was always content to 
 waive her rights in this way, and leave her friends to 
 prove the truth of the precept, " It is more blessed to 
 give than to receive." 
 
 One happy result for the children followed upon her 
 arrival. A holiday had to be given. Since her visit 
 
 II
 
 1 62 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 was so short a one it would be scarcely polite to leave 
 her to spend it in loneliness, or to distract her by the 
 shrill echoings of "The Witches' Frolic." 
 
 A long-planned treat was at once thought of, and 
 the children begged for an extra-early dinner, and a 
 gipsy-tea in the woods, where Mr. Locke and Fred 
 could join us after an hour or two of trout-fishing. 
 The proposal seemed a feasible one. In acting upon 
 it they would be taken out of the risk of encounters 
 with Aunt Rachel ; and, trusting the management of 
 the party to me, my mother gave in a willing consent. 
 
 The autumn weather was still and lovely. The 
 rich colouring in which everything was now clad, not 
 only presented brilliant pictures to the eye but called 
 up brightening thoughts to the heart. I think the 
 imagination shuts up under chill skies, and opens 
 with a sort of bound at the first flash of heat or sun- 
 shine. I know I felt an indescribable sense of 
 happiness stealing over me as a soft perfumed air 
 greeted me like a caress, and wherever my glance 
 fell an answering smile seemed given back by a 
 glowing and grateful world. 
 
 Lucy was on a donkey ; Dick held the bridle, and 
 Merylle and George trotted along, one on either side. 
 Fred had not returned from his morning studies with 
 Mr. Locke, but was to have luncheon with him, pro- 
 ceed then on the fishing excursion, and meet us sub- 
 sequently in a little dell near the trout-stream, which 
 we had fixed upon as the scene of the afternoon's
 
 IGNORANCE IS BLISS. 163 
 
 repast. Lucy's balance on the donkey was kept 
 steady by well-weighted packages in the opposite 
 pannier, and I need scarcely say that it was to this 
 side of the steed that George was wedded in his 
 promenade. His interest was unflagging in the safe 
 conveyance of the provision-basket ; his steps un- 
 wearied as long as this goal of his hopes lay close 
 under his eye. His watch, however, had to be re- 
 linquished at last. There was a little cottage at the 
 opening of the wood where I determined to leave the 
 donkey and one half of its burden, and to let the 
 children play about and gather wild flowers while I 
 attempted a water-colour sketch of a rustic bridge in 
 the vicinity. This programme was adopted with only 
 one variation in its details. 
 
 Blackberries not blossoms were to be the object 
 of search of the younger ones, and as the quest 
 would doubtless prove more engrossing than the 
 one I had proposed, I yielded gracefully to the 
 amendment. One would have thought no harm 
 could come to even the most incorrigible scapegrace 
 on level ground, and amid the quietude of woodland 
 loveliness. But there are boys who baffle all sane 
 calculations. 
 
 I was giving the finishing touches to my sketch 
 when I heard an outcry. The voice was George's, 
 and he was running towards me with his eyes more 
 excited and his mouth more wide open than I had 
 ever seen them except in a case of special feasting. 
 
 II 2
 
 1 64 My MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 " What is the matter ?" I exclaimed, starting from 
 my seat and letting my portfolio fall unheeded to the 
 ground. To see George in this state was to awaken 
 alarm at once. 
 
 " Dick's gone !" he cried. " Come quick quick 
 Ellie ! or we shall never get him back." 
 
 I flew at the words. Action was more to the point 
 than interrogation where George was concerned. 
 Seeing me set in motion, he had already in a measure 
 collapsed into calm that is, his face had become 
 stolid again, though his feet scampered along still, 
 leading me in the direction of a neighbouring thicket. 
 Here I was greeted by new outcries. Merylle and 
 Lucy were both screaming and executing some 
 sort of wild dance around a hollow circle in the 
 ground. 
 
 On approach, this proved to be a pitfall, and to 
 my horror I perceived the top of Dick's head some 
 way beneath the surface. He was uttering no sound 
 or appeal himself, which was anything but reassuring, 
 and I bent towards him in terror. 
 
 " Dick ! Dick ! Are you hurt ?" I exclaimed. 
 
 He tried to give me a glance in reply, but at the 
 mere motion of his head, down he went farther, and 
 even I screamed at the sight. I threw myself by the 
 side of the cavity, and stretching out an arm, caught 
 him eagerly round the neck. 
 
 " Don't don't choke me !" he blurted out then. 
 " I'm all right, if you'll only get me up."
 
 IGNORANCE IS BLISS. 165 
 
 But that was easier said than done. The children 
 were utterly helpless. The very force of their cries 
 seemed to give shocks to the quaking ground, and 
 render his footing more tremulously insecure, while 
 their feeble little hands, if they attempted to take 
 hold of him, succeeded only in grasping him for a 
 second, and let go so suddenly that he was dropped 
 down as by a fresh impetus. It was better, I saw, to 
 depend only on my own resources, and waving them 
 all back, I leant towards Dick again, and implored 
 him to catch me round my neck, if he objected to a 
 clasp of his own. He was not averse to this step, and 
 by dint of vigorous springs and plunges of his feet 
 beneath, while his arms gave me an almost throttling 
 seizure, he rose finally to the surface. I could scarcely 
 help laughing then. He was so encompassed and 
 encrusted with his favourite dust and mire that 
 even his ambition must have been satisfied. For 
 the first time I detected something approaching to 
 a disconsolate look as he ran his eye over his ruined 
 garments, and attempted to rid himself of some 
 superfluous earth which had gathered in his hair and 
 ears. 
 
 George looked on stolidly, and, to my surprise, Dick 
 gave him a sudden push at the moment. 
 
 " It was he did it !" he cried ; " and the little cad 
 only shrieked then and helped me farther in. He 
 wanted to get the best bunch of blackberries, and 
 knocked me anywhere."
 
 1 66 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 George's sensitiveness, which my mother had such 
 touching belief in, came to the front here. He set up 
 a dismal wail, and I had harder work to pacify him 
 than to get Dick out of the pitfall. I expected Mr. 
 Locke and Fred to put in a speedy appearance, and I 
 was anxious that matters should for once have a 
 smooth aspect before the curate. But if I had had 
 an undue confidence earlier in my powers of manage- 
 ment, the conceit was to be cured by signal discom- 
 fiture. 
 
 I heard a call from Fred, followed by quick footsteps 
 through the thicket, while George's eyes were still red 
 and Dick grimy. To heighten the unpleasantness, 
 the party was enlarged beyond what I had expected. 
 The rector's son, Tom, as well as the eldest girl, 
 Julia, had been met by Fred, and were invited by him 
 with easy hospitality to partake of our picnic repast. 
 Though I was not good at arithmetic, as I need 
 scarcely announce, my first effort was at a mental 
 calculation respecting the size and number of my 
 meat-patties and jam-tartlets, and their possibilities 
 of going round the guests. It would have been well 
 now if I could have done "long division," and by 
 some mysterious process of this kind have stretched 
 out my supplies so as to suffice and satisfy. 
 
 I did not care for Julia Horton, and I fear this un- 
 amiable prejudice brought a new feature of vexation 
 into the matter. I had privately denounced her as 
 " stupid," and to take any trouble for a girl of that
 
 IGNORANCE IS BLISS. 167 
 
 kind seemed to me a waste of time and intelligence. 
 However, there she was. Fred had only been her 
 pioneer by a second of space, and I was compelled to 
 bring something of graciousness into my reception. 
 
 Mr. Locke was standing near, and though a gentle- 
 man is engaged, he is still free to observe, it may be 
 to disapprove ; so we must be allowed to show our- 
 selves engaging. The smiles I had summoned up 
 were not wholly hypocritical, for I liked Tom well 
 enough, and, as usual, Mr. Locke's pleasant face threw 
 a brightness over everything. Dick's figure attracted 
 him speedily. He drew him towards him, despite 
 of perilous contact, and gave him a sort of friendly 
 shake. 
 
 "Where have you been to?" he questioned, with 
 amusement in his eyes. " You have made acquaint- 
 ance with the rabbits, or their burrows, at all events. 
 I suppose ' Alice in Wonderland ' has led to this ; 
 but I believe your sister would be quite as well 
 pleased if you had a less inquiring mind." 
 
 " Or acquiring person," I corrected. " The amount 
 of dust and daubs he contracts in the day is something 
 incalculable. If I had my will, I would clothe him in 
 mackintosh, like Captain Boyton, and then he might 
 take to the water or what he liked without risk or 
 ruination." 
 
 Dick was impervious to either reasoning or remarks, 
 jso I ventured on mine without fear of a response like 
 George's. In fact, he was what every one called " a
 
 1 68 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 fine boy," though I have reason to dread the ex- 
 pression. It seems to point to a state of untutored 
 recklessness, and to encourage tendencies which may 
 be manly, but are certainly not refining. 
 
 We all turned now towards the wood cottage where 
 the provisions were in waiting, and this was the first 
 move which cheered up George at all. He had had a 
 shy, shattered look about him up to this, which, in con- 
 junction with reddened eyes, was calculated to convey 
 the impression that I had been boxing and beating 
 him. As we walked along, I found Mr. Locke at my 
 side. His first question put me in a flutter of appre- 
 hension, for it reminded me of a neglected duty. 
 
 " I hope Mrs. Wynham is well," he began, " and that 
 the home teaching does not entirely devolve upon you 
 now? You were to have more time to yourself, you 
 told me, when your father and mother returned." 
 
 " Oh yes, there is nothing wrong," I rejoined hastily, 
 " The time is there, I suppose ; but it goes faster than 
 I can keep up with it." 
 
 " You promised me, you know, to visit the schools," 
 he interposed. 
 
 I was silent for an instant. I was ashamed to con- 
 fess the real facts of the case, namely, that for two 
 consecutive weeks I had completely forgotten the visit- 
 ing-day when it came round. I always remembered 
 it on the following morning ; but this was of little use, 
 since six days more of other thoughts and works were 
 sufficient again to erase it from my mind.
 
 IGNORANCE IS BLISS. 169 
 
 " I hope to go to-morrow," I stammered at last. " I 
 have been busy ; that is to say, in some ways ; in others,. 
 I am afraid, not so inactive rather." 
 
 " Your memory was not busy ? Is that what I am 
 to understand ?" he asked with a smile. 
 
 " Precisely, Mr. Locke. I was reluctant to admit it ; 
 but I might as well have done it frankly, as leave it to 
 your superior sagacity to suggest." 
 
 " Once you make a beginning, it will be different," he 
 said. " The business, whether you find pleasure in it 
 or the reverse, will naturally, then, by some process of 
 impression, lay claim to your thoughts." 
 
 " Oh, I hope it will be pleasant," I ejaculated. " I 
 shouldn't like to undertake anything with regularity 
 that is to be disagreeable." 
 
 " If you bring the aforesaid regularity to bear upon 
 it, you will not find it so bad, Miss Wynham. Habit,, 
 you know, is our second nature. It is surprising how 
 the most uncongenial tasks become attractive in the 
 end, if pursued in the spirit of determination. At the 
 same time, I don't imply for a moment that a tidy 
 row of little school-children will impress you unfavour- 
 ably, or excite this distaste. You have had practice 
 in the line, too ; and teaching, I believe, is rather your 
 strong point." 
 
 " Who told you that, Mr. Locke ? I wish you had 
 seen me in the midst of the little ones when I was the 
 sole head at home, and you would not have thought 
 my talent for order, at all events, very great. To be
 
 170 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 sure, they are hopeless children. Merylle thinks noise 
 music, George becomes blank at the very sight of a 
 book. To feed his mind is an impossible attempt as 
 Jong as his actual appetite is so insatiable ; and as to 
 Dick " 
 
 " Well, what about Master Dick ?" and Mr. Locke 
 had another smile for the rogue. 
 
 " If his brain works," I said, " it is only by dint of 
 physical exertion rumpling his hair, and rubbing at 
 his slate. By the time he has a row of figures cast 
 up, he is a figure himself. He is proud of his pro- 
 ficiency in sums, but I defy any one to make out 
 whether he is right or wrong, the confusion is so 
 terrible." 
 
 Speaking thus we had reached the hut, and my 
 stores were presently opened out. They had grown 
 smaller and smaller, I thought, and the papers more 
 voluminous, as I unfolded pies and patties from their 
 wrappings. The party, on the other hand, seemed to 
 augment in importance. Julia, I perceived, had on a 
 new dress, and when she seated herself, with the folds 
 outspread, I almost shrank from the shabby offering I 
 could make. Fred sprang to the rescue in a most 
 heedless manner. He took the dish of patties from 
 my hand, and, with reckless generosity, flung three or. 
 four of them into Miss Julia's lap. 
 
 " They are so small !" he exclaimed. " You should 
 take a good dozen at once !" 
 
 I almost sprang from my seat, but, controlling my-
 
 IGNORANCE IS BLISS. 171 
 
 self with an effort, I dived into the lemonade-basket, 
 and brought up two bottles and a cork-screw. This 
 was all that could be produced. The children were to 
 have had milk, and I thought this supply of the effer- 
 vescing beverage would have sufficed for Mr. Locke, 
 Fred, and myself. The first idea of the gipsy-tea had 
 been abandoned, as involving risks with the tinder and 
 firebrands, which could scarcely be run in Dick's com- 
 pany. Thus the repast was of a mixed and anomalous 
 character ; but this would have mattered little if it had 
 not been of the scanty order, too. However, I laid 
 little claims to my share of it. My appetite was really 
 gone from nervousness, and I refused every lavish sug- 
 gestion of Fred. The patties, meanwhile, which had 
 been scattered by him too profusely, were safely picked 
 up by George, so that no waste was incurred here, and 
 the viands went round better than I had expected. 
 Mr. Locke talked so pleasantly and continuously, I 
 don't think he had opportunity to demolish much ; but 
 he appeared to enjoy himself all the same, and, on the 
 way back, kept the whole party in good spirits, as well 
 as order. 
 
 On reaching the house I saw my mother watching 
 for us in the portico. She beckoned me in, but told 
 the others to run and join Aunt Rachel and my 
 father, who were out walking somewhere in the 
 grounds. I was made a little anxious by her manner, 
 and still more so when she asked me gravely to come 
 up with her to her own room. When we had entered the
 
 1/2 MY MO THEKS DIAMONDS. 
 
 pretty boudoir she closed the door, and then approach- 
 ing the sofa she pointed me to a seat by her side. 
 
 "Ellie," she began earnestly, "you have often 
 wished to learn something which I thought it as well 
 to spare you the knowledge of for a while. But, if 
 you still desire it, you shall hear all now." 
 
 My face grew full of eagerness in a moment. 
 
 " Is it about Uncle George ?" I interposed quickly. 
 
 "Yes," was the reply. "An unexpected change 
 has given matter for new thought and action. It 
 would be impossible to keep you in ignorance much 
 longer of one important event which approaches. It 
 may be right, therefore, that you should know every- 
 thing." 
 
 The decision delighted me. I little imagined all 
 that it involved, or how the secrets which puzzle us lie 
 often behind a veil which we lift only at the peril of 
 our own peace and lightheartedness. Wherever 
 curiosity lingers, there will be carelessness as to the 
 means by which we may satisfy it, and nothing but 
 hard experience will teach us to recognise the bliss of 
 ignorance.
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 
 THE VISION ON THE STAIRCASE. 
 
 " Our acts our angels are, or good or ill, 
 Our fatal shadows that walk by us still." 
 
 FLETCHER. 
 
 MY longing, nevertheless, was not to be so speedily 
 gratified as I had thought My mother was just 
 beginning her narration when a call came from Aunt 
 Rachel. We had believed her safe with my father, 
 but I suppose the advent of the children was the 
 signal for her flight. In any case, she bustled in 
 now, anxious, as she said, for a consultation with my 
 mother. I need scarcely add that the important 
 matter concerned here touched on divers mysteries of 
 the toilet, and some projected purchases which she 
 was to make in London. 
 
 I felt greatly vexed at the interruption, but it only 
 involved a delay. A promise once given, I had no 
 fear respecting its fulfilment. Questions and plead- 
 ings need not be put into force in the future. My 
 mother would be as anxious as myself to end the 
 mystification for me, and carry out what she had
 
 174 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 determined on. But a stronger will than either of 
 ours had decreed that the communication was to be 
 made in an unexpected place and under circum- 
 stances more impressive than could have attended 
 the disclosure amid the surroundings of my own 
 bright home. 
 
 Aunt Rachel was in no way deterred now by any 
 token of preoccupation in my mother's manner from 
 becoming expansive on the subject nearest to her 
 heart. She opened up one of her boxes, unfolded a 
 new dress, aired the flowery borders of a French cap, 
 and exhibited on her own person the special " cut " of 
 a lace mantilla before she had satisfied her claims on 
 another's attention. The first dinner-bell rang then, 
 and no hope remained to me of a quiet time with my 
 mother for that day. 
 
 I was looking from the window of my room, having 
 just finished my dressing, when I caught sight of a 
 man on horseback riding up to the door. The next 
 thing I heard was my mother's voice in anxious tones 
 giving orders for the carriage to be brought round. 
 She was standing in the lobby at the head of the 
 stairs as the directions were issued, and the moment 
 after she opened the door of my room. 
 
 " Ellie," she said, " get ready quickly. Your uncle 
 George is very ill, and has sent for me. He men- 
 tioned you, too ; you are to come with me." 
 
 My first feeling was of awe, almost of fright. A 
 visit to the strange, mournful house had always a
 
 THE VISION ON THE STAIRCASE. 175 
 
 certain significance about it, even in the hours of 
 warmth and daylight, but to enter it in dusk and 
 dimness, with the saddening weight of sickness over- 
 hanging its portal, would involve additional tremors. 
 
 My mother noticed my expression in an instant. 
 
 " Do you not wish to accompany me ?" she asked. 
 " There is no need to do so if you have any reluctance. 
 Remember, I don't urge it." 
 
 My answer was a sudden kiss of assurance. 
 
 " Oh yes, I will go," I exclaimed. " If you are to 
 leave us, I shall be happier with you. How soon are 
 we to start, mother ?" 
 
 " Immediately, now. You may make but slight 
 preparation. I trust we shall find your uncle better, 
 and that we may be able to return to-morrow or next 
 day." 
 
 She left me then, and we were both quick in our 
 movements, and met almost at the same time in the 
 hall. But here a scene was awaiting us. When the 
 children saw the carriage come round, and my mother 
 ready for another departure, they clung about her im- 
 ploringly. George's eyes filled up, and she could 
 scarcely loosen her gown from his hold. With the 
 withdrawal of her presence seemed to pass all the 
 sustaining pleasure of his life, and that his affection 
 for her was bound up with the deeper roots of self- 
 love and self-need, did not make it the less powerful 
 in its action. 
 
 As to Lucy, she set up a little cry at once, which
 
 1 76 MY MO THEKS DIA MONDS. 
 
 some interference on the part of Aunt Rachel deve- 
 loped into sobs and struggles. I believe the appear- 
 ance of the latter personage on the scene had a good 
 deal to say to the rising emotion of the flock. It 
 seemed ominous somehow ; they could scarcely sepa- 
 rate it from a recent time of trial, when the absence 
 of the one dearest to them was so closely associated 
 with it. However, my father came to the rescue with 
 caresses and assurances, and the two youngest were 
 appeased in a measure. 
 
 As to Fred, Merylle, and Dick, they viewed us with 
 bewildered eyes too wide open to give room for any 
 other organ to come into play. For once they were 
 speechless. But this unexampled state of calm was 
 to pass off in an access of double excitement. Fred 
 was the first to break into movement, and I felt a 
 sudden clap on my shoulder, the result of reaction. 
 
 " Nell, you don't say it !" he exclaimed. " It can't 
 be that you are going too ?" 
 
 " I wish you would not hit me in that way, Fred," I 
 returned ; " it's a queer style of taking leave. Of 
 course I am going. My mother wishes it, and Uncle 
 George as well." 
 
 " And to sleep there to pass a night in that house ! 
 You'll never do it." 
 
 " I suppose you mean, you wouldn't ?" was my re- 
 tort. " I don't see what I have to be afraid of." 
 
 " Of course you don't, or you'd feel rum, I can tell 
 you. But there ! I mustn't shake you to pieces before
 
 THE VISION ON THE STAIRCASE. 177 
 
 the time. Good-bye, Nellie !" And he gave me 
 something intended to be a hug this time, but which, 
 to speak the truth, approached more nearly to a 
 throttle. 
 
 The rest of the farewells were quickly exchanged, 
 and Aunt Rachel, who assumed a measure of import- 
 ance again, as the only lady left in charge, stood the 
 last on the doorstep, waving her handkerchief. 
 
 As we drove in the open carriage, with Thomas on 
 the box directly in front, no confidential conversation 
 could be entered into on the way to the Manor-House., 
 We had not waited for the late dinner, but the cook 
 had put in a basket with sandwiches, pastries, and fruit, 
 with which I amused myself for a while. As to my 
 mother, she had little appetite, and I saw that her 
 eyes watched each cottage and landmark along the 
 road, as if she were only eager for the rapidity of our 
 progress. 
 
 " Is uncle so very ill.?" I ventured at length. " There 
 is nothing of immediate danger to be feared, is there?" 
 
 " I trust not, Ellie. Willis is inclined to make the 
 worst of things. Still he wrote for me in evident 
 anxiety. Your uncle has had a threatening of heart 
 disease in connection with his attacks of gout, and that 
 is always alarming." 
 
 Meanwhile, the light was fading from the horizon ; 
 the autumn day assumed a touch of melancholy. It 
 was dusk that sad, solemn hour when there is neither 
 sun nor star, when the mourning garb drawn on for the 
 
 12
 
 1 78 MY MO THER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 deaddayhasnotbeen lightened by one glimmerof white. 
 At such a time any shadow upon the thoughts is 
 doubly intensified. We seem separated from the hope 
 within the heavens, which has become so mysteriously 
 veiled. The upward glance is met by no response. 
 There is naught but loneliness in the sky. It has been 
 forsaken the first, and turns a desolate look upon the 
 earth. I gave an instinctive shiver as we alighted at 
 the gloomy gates of the Manor-House, and only for 
 the presence of my mother, the ordeal of an entrance 
 would have been difficult to bear. Willis, who appeared 
 promptly in answer to our ring, had a face calculated to 
 appal any one. Always lank and lugubrious, there 
 was something ominous, even awful, in his expression 
 now, and he ushered us speechlessly into the house. 
 He was really, I believe, attached to his master, and 
 whatever was the mournful secret of Uncle George's 
 life, he, I felt sure, knew it all, and gave him more than 
 sympathy. My mother went up at once to uncle's 
 room, but Willis demurred to my admission as yet, 
 and I was led to a dreary place of waiting. This was 
 a small oak-panelled parlour, opening off one of the 
 back passages. The library, the only apartment familiar 
 to me, was locked up, as was always the case when 
 uncle was not there himself in the midst of his treasured 
 books and papers. Willis laid down a metal candle- 
 stick,' with solemnity on the centre-table. A tall at- 
 tenuated candle burned in the former, and cast fickle, 
 sickly gleams on the sombre objects of the room.
 
 THE VISION ON THE STAIRCASE. 179 
 
 These were few in number, and of forbidding solidity 
 and stiffness of aspect. A high-backed chair, a black 
 cabinet, a sort of sarcophagus in the far corner, and a 
 set of stern book-shelves encircling the walls such, 
 with the centre-piece referred to, formed the sole sur- 
 roundings to which I was left. The dreariness seemed 
 unbearable after a while. Willis had asked if I would 
 have a cup of tea brought to me, but I had refused. 
 Loneliness in this house was something too pursuing 
 and affrighting to enable me to enjoy aught in connec- 
 tion with it. Cheered by the presence of my mother, 
 all would become different, and I said I would wait till 
 she came down. Minutes went on, and this waiting 
 grew oppressive. I could only endure it in constant 
 motion, and I went again and again round the room, 
 pausing just for a second before the shelves, with their 
 dusty burden of darkened, discoloured books. I could 
 have no inclination to touch or open one, for all were 
 alike uninviting in their titles and bindings. They 
 seemed to have been chosen with a regard to what was 
 dingy and dismal, and to embody something of the, 
 peculiar tastes and temper of their rigid owner. The 
 half light, too, in which I found myself did not invite 
 to any special research, and the dead stillness of the 
 house would have become more unnerving had I at- 
 tempted reading or reverie. 
 
 All at once I heard myself called. I thought so, at 
 least, and starting eagerly forwards, I turned the 
 handle of the door. Looking into the passage, I saw 
 
 12 2
 
 i8o MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 that all was motionless, and wrapped now in a mantle 
 weightier than dimness the gloom of actual night. 
 Again I fancied my name was uttered. I went back, 
 seized the candle, and passed swiftly into the corridor. 
 In my haste and confusion I took the way opposite to 
 that leading to the hall, and a few steps brought me to 
 a pause at an ominous spot. I just raised my eyes, 
 and would have retreated instantly. I was at the foot 
 of the back staircase. But in that upward glance 
 something had attracted me. A light gleamed for one 
 second overhead, and, believing that my mother must 
 be here, I sprang up a step or two. 
 
 " Mother ! mother !" I murmured, but no answer 
 reached me. Perchance my tone was almost inaudible 
 from awe. Be it as it might, I must find her, if she were 
 beyond reach of hearing. The closed door which Fred 
 had broken through could no longer form a barrier, 
 else I should not have caught that sudden glimmer of 
 light. There was a bend in the staircase, just at the 
 bottom ; but this passed, I came immediately in view of 
 a long straight flight. 
 
 I gazed up it and stopped, my pulses coming to a 
 pause too, and a sort of icy tremor gathering around 
 my heart. Some one was standing at the top. One 
 glance showed me who it was, and with parted lips I 
 broke into a wild cry. 
 
 " Fred ! Fred !" I called out, " what is this ? What 
 brings you here ? Oh ! don't terrify me in this way !" 
 
 Then I sprang back a pace, held the candle
 
 THE VISION ON THE STAIRCASE. 181 
 
 stretched out in advance, and my faculties woke up 
 to a clearer sense of the vision. It was Fred still, 
 but his semblance only. A full-length portrait in life- 
 like attitude was set into the wall at the very head of 
 the staircase. I went upwards, continuing to keep 
 the light in front of me, and when I came nearer I 
 gazed long and steadfastly on the picture. I knew 
 now that it was not our own Fred, but I had never 
 seen such a strong resemblance between any two 
 faces before. There was the same handsome fore- 
 head, close curling hair, and, above all, the careless 
 look, half-daring, half-constraining, which was Fred's 
 special characteristic, and was a force in itself to con- 
 done faults and check rebuke. The nature shown 
 here was one plainly to be led, not driven, and in 
 which the affection that spoke in the frank brow and 
 smiling eyes was the one element to be caught hold 
 of and trusted to. 
 
 The bewilderment with which I had first viewed 
 the picture yielded gradually to a species of mesmeric 
 attraction, and I could scarcely withdraw my eyes 
 from it. Though it represented a lad of about four- 
 teen or fifteen, just at Fred's present age, it had 
 evidently been taken long years before, and my mind 
 flew away in thoughts and conjectures, conjuring up a 
 time when the original had been full of boyish hope 
 and happiness. What had passed since ? Where was 
 he now, and wherefore was his very memory a thing 
 to be blotted out? Was it death which had drawn
 
 1 82 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 this curtain over his presence, which had shut him off 
 in such a cold and cruel oblivion ? 
 
 Suddenly, with a fresh longing for my mother, an 
 irrepressible need of her vicinity, I started from my 
 inaction. I perceived then that the door covered in 
 red cloth, which Fred had broken through, was open 
 now, also one beyond that led directly into the long 
 corridor. Thus the portrait, which had been hidden 
 away in a sort of recess between the two doors, stood 
 out once more in its lifelike position at the head of 
 the staircase, the eyes looking down and gazing 
 earnestly at any one who came up the flight. Fred, 
 I suppose, in his eager bound, anywhere for escape, 
 had not stopped to note a picture, or think that this 
 could have been the mystery buried so strangely from 
 sight by Uncle George. 
 
 When I had passed the second door I was in the 
 principal corridor off which the bedrooms of the 
 house opened, and I caught sight of a light burning 
 in a broad candlestick and laid on the floor about 
 midway down. A door near was partly ajar, and, as 
 I approached, it was opened more fully, and my 
 mother stepped out. I went towards her impulsively. 
 
 " Oh, come down !" I exclaimed. " Come down 
 quickly, mother. I can't bear it longer." 
 
 " Hush, Ellie !" she murmured, and put her finger 
 on her lips. " Your uncle is just falling off to sleep. 
 I heard some stir, and called you once, but then I 
 thought you must have gone back. I cannot leave
 
 THE VISION ON THE STAIRCASE. 183 
 
 my post just yet, but if you send up Willis, or one of 
 the servants, I shall be with you immediately." 
 
 I hastened on at her words, and as I was nearer to 
 the front staircase now I descended by it. Finding 
 my way to the parlour I rang the bell, and after a 
 delay the butler answered it. He carried in a small 
 tray, which he laid down with an air of importance. 
 There was nothing on it but some meagre slices of 
 bread and butter, a tiny tea-pot, cream-jug, and two 
 cups and plates. 
 
 Notwithstanding the limited nature of the array, it 
 was set forth with a lengthy elaborateness which put 
 me out of all patience. Arresting him in the process 
 almost sharply, I begged him to go at once to his 
 master's room, and release my mother from her 
 attendance there. Willis eyed me slowly at the 
 request, made some further irritating rattle with the 
 tea-equipage, but finally hobbled off, and I heard him 
 go towards the front staircase. 
 
 When my mother came to me at last, she lighted 
 up two tall candles which were on the mantelpiece. 
 These threw a ray of greater cheerfulness on the dingy 
 furniture of the chamber, and when we were seated 
 opposite to one another at the little table, and she 
 had begun to pour out tea, something more home-like 
 stole around the scene. 
 
 " I think your uncle is better, Ellie," said my 
 mother after a pause. " But he may get some rest 
 now, and even if he awaken again it is as well for you
 
 1 84 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 not to see him to-night. I have had a room prepared 
 for you and myself just opposite to his, and Willis, 
 who always sleeps in his dressing-room, will let me 
 know if there is any change." 
 
 I was sipping my unsweetened tea as she spoke. 
 Sugar, I suppose, was a. sinful luxury not to be 
 thought of under the rigid rule of uncle's establish- 
 ment. 
 
 " Mother," I returned, " you promised to tell me al! 
 about Uncle George, and other matters which have 
 puzzled me, when we should next be alone together. 
 But I think I know something already. Had not 
 Uncle George a son ?" 
 
 " He had he has" was her murmured response, 
 "That is the secret burden on his life on mine. 
 That son grieved him ; nay, more, wronged him. But 
 he is penitent now. Yet your uncle cannot forgive, 
 I say cannot because I believe as his heart feels at 
 present the act of pardon would be actually impos- 
 sible to him. 
 
 " It is this which is so woful. Your uncle is very 
 ill ; his son, too, has been at the point of death, yet 
 nothing would move the father to a reconciliation, 
 Oh, it is terrible to see this hardness on the very brink 
 of the grave. We, who have to pray every day to 
 have our transgressions blotted out, how are we to be 
 heard and answered if forgiveness is not in ourselves ? 
 Where is the love here to draw us to the All-merciful 
 One when compassion is hidden away from our own
 
 THE VISION ON THE STAIRCASE. 185 
 
 flesh ? ' He that loveth not his brother whom he 
 hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not 
 seen ?' " 
 
 My mother was greatly moved. Her own heart, 
 full of an indescribable and irrepressible tenderness, 
 felt a pang in picturing only this condition of icy iso- 
 lation. The harsh human instinct which impels to 
 rancour was conquered in her case by the divine spirit 
 of charity, and she looked with tears upon the stub- 
 bornness which is born of a fatal pride, which knows 
 not that it is dragging our fallen nature to the very 
 lowest depths, under the illusion of upraising it. 
 
 " What did his son do ?" I ventured, after a pro- 
 tracted pause. " Tell me all, mother." 
 
 " I scarcely like to speak of it now," she returned 
 with her old gentleness. " Now, when to explain 
 everything truly and fully, I must say hard things of 
 one who is lying in suffering so near us, who may 
 soon have to pass from our presence into that of a 
 higher judge. Still, Ellie, I have made a promise, and 
 if you wish you shall hear the story." 
 
 My curiosity was aroused, and I pleaded to have it 
 withheld no longer. My mother had my hand in hers 
 when she began the recital. 
 
 " I have spoken to you of your grandmother, Ellie," 
 she said. " She had but two children who survived 
 your uncle George and myself. There is a great dif- 
 ference in our ages, but she was delicate for years, and 
 lost several children. Then when I came, and was
 
 1 86 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 spared to her, she made me her chief pet and care. I 
 think this embittered my brother in some way. He 
 was passionately attached to his mother, and could 
 not bear that her affection should be even divided, 
 and that he should lose any measure of the exclusive 
 devotion which had been given to him hitherto as an 
 only child. Even then he became morbid, and gave 
 way often to a jealous and unreasonable spirit. He 
 married early, and it was hoped his wife, who was 
 very winning and lovable, would have had a softening 
 effect on his temper. But he lost her in the first year 
 of their wedded life. She died a few weeks after the 
 birth of her boy. Your uncle was living then in this 
 old Manor-House, which he has never left since. This 
 sudden blow, this rupture of the new affection to 
 which he had trusted, had the effect of deepening his 
 gloom and his peculiarities, and he became a complete 
 recluse. On quitting your grandfather's house at the 
 time of his marriage, he had been annoyed that his 
 father had not made him a more liberal allow- 
 ance. The habits of economy which were induced at 
 first by something of necessity, turned later to penu- 
 riousness. He shut himself up in a sombre solitude 
 which was only relieved by the brightening presence 
 of his little child. That child was only four years 
 younger than myself, and whenever I could get him 
 as a playfellow, I was attracted by his gaiety and 
 joyousness. He was a boy full of health and spirits, 
 with a wonderfully winning face, and who gained
 
 THE VISION ON THE STAIRCASE. 187 
 
 everything by the mere compelling influence of his 
 look " 
 
 " He was like Fred, was he not, mother ?" I inter- 
 posed quickly. 
 
 " Yes, the resemblance is striking. You would see 
 it, above all, in the portrait which was taken of your 
 cousin Frederick, at the age of fifteen, and which your 
 uncle, from some odd whim, had inserted in the wall 
 at the head of the back staircase. His own room was 
 then just at the top of the flight, and I fancy he liked 
 to gaze on this well-loved face as he went slowly up 
 the steps " 
 
 " Then he was fond of him once ?" I murmured. 
 
 " Fond, Ellie ! Ah, it was more than that there 
 was the danger. He idolised him, adored him, and 
 as we never enshrine anything or any one in this 
 world in too high a place but it is shattered from its 
 throne, thus he had to look later upon a ruin. Love 
 is a rightful instinct of our nature, but not idolatry. 
 That is a false, failing feeling, and the proof is, that let 
 us be disappointed in the object of our devotion, and 
 anger instantly chases away affection ; we would crush 
 what we once worshipped." 
 
 " But what did he do, mother ? What did this poor 
 Fred do?" 
 
 " You shall hear it all, Ellie, but I must tell you 
 first of what happened beforehand. Your uncle grew 
 daily more strange and miserly. He had his son 
 educated, it is true, at a good school, but in small
 
 1 88 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 minor matters which would have given him pleasure, 
 and have responded to the needs and wishes of his 
 young buoyant heart, he was kept sternly in check. 
 There was the capricious, contradictory system of 
 allowances and restraints adopted which is peculiar 
 to some phases of the penurious mind. Fred never 
 knew exactly what extravagance might be sanctioned 
 or what petty expenditure would be condemned. It 
 is scarcely surprising that under such discipline he 
 grew both reckless and reticent. He could not make 
 a friend or confidant of his father, for he reproved 
 him often for an act of generosity, and again, showed 
 little or no concern about money which went in some 
 ostentatious outlay. He entered a college at Oxford, 
 and I believe he fell in here with a wild set of com- 
 panions. In any case, debts were contracted which 
 he feared to disclose, and he grew less and less open 
 with his father. It was just at this time that your 
 brother Fred was born, and was named after his 
 grandfather Merlin and his cousin. I was living then 
 in a small house in a country town, where your father 
 practised as a physician. My mother had died a few 
 years previously, and the heirloom of her valuable dia- 
 monds had descended to me, as her only daughter." 
 
 My mother paused here for a second, and at the 
 moment we heard a step in the passage outside, and 
 Willis opened the door. 
 
 "My master is awake," he said, "but he doesn't seem 
 no better. I think we ought to send for the doctor."
 
 THE VISION ON THE STAIRCASE. 189 
 
 Uncle had such a distaste to the presence of a 
 physician, or possibly rather to the fees which it en- 
 tailed, that none had been summoned as yet. He 
 saw my father occasionally in a friendly way, and 
 allowed him to prescribe for him ; and it was a visit 
 from him that my mother thought it best to propose 
 now. 
 
 " He could come early in the morning, Willis," she 
 said. " It might only alarm your master to bring any 
 one in to-night." 
 
 Willis agreed to this. In fact, I think he had in- 
 truded on us without any special cause, or wish for 
 immediate action, merely with the design of being 
 disagreeable. I had never liked the man from the 
 time I was a child, and he knew this so well that he 
 took revenge for my prejudice by a temper bordering 
 upon incivility. He had contrived to interrupt the 
 conversation now which I so much wished to prolong, 
 and he bustled over his miserable tea-things and their 
 removal with the same provoking dilatoriness as 
 before.
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 TOLD IN THE NIGHT. 
 
 " A sacred burden is this life ye bear, 
 Look on it, lift it, bear it solemnly, 
 Stand up and walk beneath it steadfastly. 
 Fail not for sorrow, falter not for sin, 
 But onward, upward, till the goal ye win." 
 
 F. A. KEMBLE. 
 
 AN interruption is always irritating, but I must say I 
 rebelled against it, especially when it came from the 
 part of Willis. As if he had wished purposely to 
 provoke me, he did not retire with his tea-tray, but 
 lingered on, talking to my mother about uncle and his 
 failing health, and emphasising his own attention and 
 devotion to him as something priceless and unprece- 
 dented. It was well known that uncle had remem- 
 bered the man liberally in his will, and thus the 
 disinterested nature of his care was not to me par- 
 ticularly striking. 
 
 His oration ended, my mother had to go up to see 
 the invalid, and thus she had no opportunity for con- 
 tinuing her recital till we were together in our room
 
 TOLD IN THE NIGHT. 191 
 
 at night. She told me then of a sudden shock she 
 had had while our Fred was still a baby, by hearing 
 of a dreadful rupture between her brother and his son. 
 The latter had been forced at last by pressing neces- 
 sity to confess his debts, and his father's rage knew 
 no bounds. To require of him his treasured hoards 
 to satisfy rapacious and disreputable claimants was 
 like the demand of a burglar. He would as soon 
 have given up his life, and his son was literally driven 
 from his doors. 
 
 " He had been disappointed and deceived in him, 
 it is true," pursued my mother ; " but he was his child 
 still, and this was treating him like a hireling. He 
 rushed thence to ruin, to despair, tried at races and 
 gambling-tables to gain what no entreaties could get, 
 and became more deeply involved." 
 
 She paused again, and remembering where she had 
 broken off before, I interposed with eagerness : 
 
 "And the diamonds, mother? You were telling 
 me something about them when Willis came in to- 
 night." 
 
 "Yes, Ellie, and I will end all in a word or two 
 now. These gems being very precious, had been en- 
 closed in an ancient casket, and as my mother, Lady 
 Eleanor, had been in failing health for some years 
 before her death, and unable to go into company, they 
 were deposited at her banker's. At her decease, your 
 uncle George came in for a good deal of money which 
 was lying there, and when he was removing it, he
 
 192 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 asked me what I would wish to have done about the 
 diamonds. At the time, as I mentioned to you, I was 
 living in a small house, and my establishment was not 
 such as I could wholly trust. I accepted his offer 
 then to take charge of the casket for me, and I con- 
 ceived if it would be safe anywhere, it would be in his 
 very close and careful hands. Anything of a miser's 
 spirit is not satisfied, I believe, without repeated and 
 personal inspection of the secret stores, and your 
 uncle, assuming that I must partake of the same 
 anxiety, was always eager to exhibit the diamonds to 
 me whenever I paid him a visit at the Manor-House. 
 There came a day, however, when this display could 
 no longer be made something dreadful, terrible, had 
 happened. They had been taken from him, together 
 with a good deal of gold and other valuables taken 
 by his own son ! There was no doubt of this, he had 
 been seen in the house at night by Willis, had entered 
 and escaped by the window of his own bedroom, had 
 drawn the key of the strong-box from under his 
 father's pillow while he slept, and thus succeeded in 
 the fatal act. Your uncle, Ellie, never recovered that 
 blow. In his first wild wrath he would have had the 
 unhappy youth pursued. To regain his treasures 
 seemed dearer to him than the reputation, the life 
 even of his son. But I besought him, almost on my 
 knees, to refrain. What could be the lustre of gold 
 or diamonds to us henceforth, if such a stain as this 
 should sully our name and house ? I prevailed in the
 
 TOLD IN THE NIGHT. 193 
 
 end, but from that hour your uncle became childless. 
 No one dared mention, whisper even, of that fairer 
 past when a bright lovely boy had been his pride and 
 hope. All remembrance of him seemed erased from 
 the father's heart, and crime, which had blotted out 
 his name in the future, had let a pall fall over his very 
 existence. It was from this cause that the presence 
 of our Fred became gradually unbearable to your 
 uncle. The likeness between him and his hapless 
 cousin grew strange and striking, and I saw that your 
 uncle shrank from his aspect. I did not, in conse- 
 quence, always bring him in with me to the library, 
 but on one occasion, when I had left him outside, he 
 burst impetuously into the room, full of heedless 
 boasting of some bet he had won from Willis, and 
 your uncle rose then, quivering with a terrible emo- 
 tion. ' Let me never see that boy again, Eleanor !' he 
 cried in an awful tone, and frightened at his wrath, I 
 sent you all hastily away. Fred was only a little 
 fellow at the time, but there was something in his face 
 and his daring manner and expression which re- 
 minded even me too vividly of the first Fred in his 
 days of freedom and innocence. Your uncle spoke to 
 me so harshly and bitterly when you had left, of what 
 he termed my ' cruelty,' that the tears sprang to my 
 eyes, and I could scarcely control myself when I came 
 out to you in the carriage." 
 
 " I remember the day well," I interrupted, " and I 
 often wondered what had happened. I don't think 
 
 13
 
 194 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 Fred ever visited with us at the Manor-House after- 
 wards ?" 
 
 " No," pursued my mother ; " and I had determined 
 not to bring any of you again. But I could not take 
 revenge on one whom I pitied too much to blame. 
 Your uncle asked for you the next time you espe- 
 cially, Ellie and so the visits were resumed. I know 
 well I feel it deeper than words can explain that 
 his heart is not so closed as it seems. All may be 
 well yet, if we can but carry out what your father and 
 I have planned " 
 
 " And what is that ?" I asked quickly. 
 
 " It is something in which you must help us, Ellie," 
 she returned. " I have told you this sad story for two 
 reasons. First, because your restless eagerness to 
 learn it might have led to partial discoveries of your 
 own, which would leave you free to talk ; and this 
 must not be at any cost. In the next place, you 
 might possibly do something, ever so little, towards 
 working to the desired end. I think I said to you 
 that this unhappy son is deeply penitent ; indeed, 
 years ago he wrote to his father, imploring forgive- 
 ness, and stating that his whole life was blighted by 
 his terrible crime. He besought for one word or 
 token of pardon, and added that if this would be 
 given, he would ask nothing more till he could re- 
 turn, with the weight lifted in a measure from off his 
 conscience, and restore all that he had taken. To 
 this appeal your uncle gave no answer. His son was
 
 TOLD IN THE NIGHT. 195 
 
 dead to him worse than that, his very memory was 
 annihilated death is not such a slayer as this. I had 
 no knowledge of where he was, or I would have 
 written on my part. But a few months ago I had a 
 letter " 
 
 " From America ?" I exclaimed. 
 
 " Yes ; your cousin had fled there. There he has 
 been for the last fourteen years, working, labouring 
 day and night, to enable him to make the restitution 
 he had resolved on. 
 
 "He had just attained his end, when the long strain on 
 his heart and mind made itself felt at last. With the 
 first relaxing of it, his strength gave way. He fell 
 into a low, lingering fever, and was supposed to be 
 past all hope of recovery. He wrote to me from his 
 bed of sickness, told me (what I had often divined) 
 that he had no thought of taking my diamonds on 
 that ill-omened night, that disturbed suddenly by 
 Willis he had caught hastily at the first object that 
 came to hand, arid had made his escape in a panic. 
 The immediate need for discharging some of his debts 
 had obliged him to pledge them later, but he did not 
 part with them till he had assured himself that they could 
 be redeemed subsequently. In fact the arrangement 
 which transferred them from his hands was a private 
 one. They had been acquired, or hired rather, by a 
 wealthy American lady, who had entered into a solemn 
 compact to restore them when he had paid up the 
 necessary sum for release. This had been done now- 
 
 132
 
 196 MV MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 The diamonds were once more in his possession, and 
 he entreated me, if it were possible, to come and see 
 him on his dying bed, to let him put them himself into 
 my hands, and gain at the same time forgiveness 
 from my own lips. 
 
 " That request was one I could not refuse. Often 
 and often have I thought with a pang on the early 
 promise of my poor nephew, of how we were play- 
 fellows together, and what happiness had been mine, 
 while his life lay under such a weighty cloud. Your 
 father, Ellie, was very good about it all, arranged to 
 come with me himself, and this now is the full ex- 
 planation of our mysterious absence." 
 
 " And you saw my cousin ?" I inquired. 
 
 " I did, my child ; but never shall I forget the sad- 
 ness of that meeting. I would not have known him. 
 He is bowed down as by years. He, whom I met 
 last in the full flush of health and strength, with his 
 handsome face happy and radiant, is an old man now, 
 crushed, careworn. At first I thought that he was, as 
 he believed himself, very near his end ; but he rallied 
 afterwards, and only the other day we had a letter 
 from New York. He said in it that he feels wonder- 
 fully stronger, and that he is determined, come what 
 may, to embark at once for England, and sue in his 
 own person for forgiveness from his father. He may 
 be here any day now, yet still I dare not mention his 
 name to your uncle. When we returned from America, 
 your father and I both went to him, told him that the
 
 TOLD IN THE NIGHT. 197 
 
 diamonds were restored, that we had seen his son, 
 and feared he would not be long in this world. But 
 he interrupted us with a sudden passion, and warned 
 us at our peril to venture on that subject again. But 
 it may be, it is just possible, Ellie, that this illness has 
 been sent for good. He may be more softened now." 
 
 We talked long into the night, and, made earnest 
 and anxious by the confidence which had been reposed 
 in me, I thought of divers plans and projects for win- 
 ning my uncle to forgiveness. 
 
 " If he would only think of him," I said, " remem- 
 ber him as a boy, his heart must open to something 
 of the old tenderness." 
 
 " But he will not do that, Ellie. As far as is pos- 
 sible he has put away every token, every memento of 
 him. He burnt or destroyed several smaller pictures 
 and photographs of him, and the large full-length 
 portrait which was painted on a panel at the head of 
 the stairs he shut up in some strange way between 
 two doors, so that if either was opened he would know 
 of it at once by a sudden clangour and ringing of 
 bells." 
 
 " But it is free to view now, mother," I interposed ; 
 " I saw it to-night." 
 
 My mother started. 
 
 " Is this so ?" she exclaimed. " Oh, if it were some 
 symptom of relenting ! but I scarcely dare to hope it." 
 
 I told her then of Fred's rash entrance into the 
 house, and of what had happened, and we both feared
 
 198 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 that uncle had forborne to have the doors refastened 
 merely from his stern shrinking from the subject at 
 all. He never went up the back staircase now, and 
 as the front one, from constant habit, was used by all 
 the household, the picture might still remain in the 
 seclusion in which he had long buried it. This prob- 
 ably had been his thought, at least it was the only 
 conclusion we could arrive at when we considered his 
 unchanged implacability with regard to his son. 
 
 I slept but little and restlessly that night, and I 
 was relieved when the full daylight came in and 
 smiled a joyous welcome through the unshuttered 
 panes. 
 
 As the heavy clouds rolled back from the sky, and 
 let the shining blue appear, an oppression seemed to 
 be lifted from my thoughts. Doubt and darkness, 
 which are insensibly linked with dismalness in nature, 
 flee away before a brightening aspect. We are appre- 
 hensive, we know not why or wherefore, but at the 
 first gleam of sunshine the feeling is gone. Hope 
 springs up with the new day, and life begins again 
 with some of the vigour drawn from a freshened 
 world without. 
 
 My mother and I breakfasted together in the little 
 parlour, but an air of greater cheerfulness prevailed 
 now. Uncle George was better, even Willis allowed 
 that, and in honour, I suppose, of the amendment, he 
 went to most extravagant lengths in his supply of the 
 board. We had actually an egg each, a whole loaf of
 
 TOLD IN THE NIGHT. 199 
 
 bread on the table, two pats of butter, and, more mar- 
 vellous than all, an odd piece of brown ware, shaped 
 like a shell, which contained a minimum of moist sugar. 
 
 " The ' lump ' is out, ma'am," said Willis almost 
 apologetically, as he popped the offering down at my 
 mother's elbow. I wondered when it was in, for I had 
 heard before that this sweetener of the " cup that 
 cheers " was a refinement beyond uncle's approval or 
 appreciation. 
 
 The repast over, my mother saw the invalid for a 
 few minutes, and found him strong and resolute as 
 ever. His attacks passed off as rapidly as they came, 
 and he was now up, arrayed in his dressing-gown, and 
 seated in his big chair. I was to go up to him and 
 entertain him, I was told, and at the prospect I grew 
 nervous at once. To encounter him in his full force, 
 with his glance keen and questioning as ever, was an 
 ordeal more trying even than to minister to him in 
 weakness. 
 
 When I entered, the sight of the flaring colouring 
 of his morning garb was alarming in itself. This 
 terrible robe of red, orange, and blue had never been 
 unfolded to my gaze before, and, taken in combina- 
 tion with the general aggressiveness of his air and the 
 sort of angry hue which was always mounting to his 
 temples, it set me in a tremor at once. He had a 
 stick ready to his hand, and he pounded this the 
 moment he caught sight of me, like a cannonade, I 
 suppose, of welcome.
 
 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 " Is that you, Ellen ?" he cried. " Come over, come 
 closer. What are you afraid of?" 
 
 I made an impulsive movement of advance, but, 
 tripping in a tatter in the old carpet, I was all but 
 thrown head foremost on his knees. To a gouty 
 subject the greeting was formidable, and uncle drew 
 himself back with a roar. He brought his stick 
 nearly over my head now, and it was my turn to- 
 quail. 
 
 "What are you at, girl?" he broke out. " Have you 
 no sense, no steadiness ? You are all the most awk- 
 ward set of children. Not one of you is safe to walk 
 across a room." 
 
 I retreated a little, as was natural, but this only 
 made matters worse. 
 
 " There there! you'll be over the lamp-stand next," 
 he screamed. " Do you want to break everything ? 
 to have the whole thing down ? Just step here ; 
 stand still at my elbow. Could you do that ?" 
 
 It was doubtful, I thought. The heroism it de- 
 manded was scarcely mine, but I made an effort at 
 response. 
 
 " I don't know how it is, your mother hasn't got 
 this tottering way about her," pursued uncle sharply. 
 " She comes in quiet enough." 
 
 " Shall I send her to you ?" I stammered. 
 
 "And run off yourself. That's what you'd like, I 
 believe. You are a most heartless girl, Ellen, utterly 
 heartless."
 
 TOLD IN THE NIGHT. 
 
 The reproach was too much. 
 
 " I thought you wanted to get rid of me," I said. 
 " I know I can't please you, uncle, but I do my best." 
 
 "Then I have a poor idea of your powers, miss. 
 You look at me askance, nearly knock me over with 
 your violence, and stand staring like a scarecrow 
 afterwards, without even asking me how I am." 
 
 " I have been wishing to do so," I said. " I was 
 very sorry to hear you were so ill." 
 
 " I wasn't quite so bad as you thought," he inter- 
 posed, with a chuckle. " I suppose you settled I was 
 just off at the last gasp, eh ?" 
 
 " Indeed no, uncle. How can you say that ?" 
 
 " Why, I'm helping you to be honest. I don't want 
 shirking or concealment here. 
 
 " ' When a man is old, and has lots of gold, 
 Watchers don't wait till his body's cold.' " 
 
 He laughed again in giving utterance to this hateful 
 couplet. I could not listen patiently to such senti- 
 ments, and already there was a recoil from my position 
 at his chair. 
 
 "Now you are off!" he exclaimed. "You are turn- 
 ing and twisting anew. Is it impossible for you to 
 keep quiet ?" 
 
 " Certainly it is, when you say such unkind, such 
 unfounded things, uncle," was my reply. " You can't 
 expect me to let silence or stillness rather give 
 consent." 
 
 "Why it's a joke, girl. Did you never hear one
 
 202 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 before ? Your nerves might be equal to that, I think. 
 I'm better to-day, and you ought to be glad to see it, 
 and not show yourself so cross and testy. Your 
 mother promised you would come and sit with me, 
 and rouse me up a bit, but it's not likely you'll do 
 that with your talk, at all events, whatever you do in 
 deeds." 
 
 I saw a cane-bottomed chair near, with rickety legs 
 and rent seat, and began to question the advisability 
 of committing myself to it. Could I hope for more 
 ease on this support, or should I become doubly 
 tremulous ? 
 
 Uncle caught the glance, and seconded it with a 
 nod. 
 
 " Yes, take it," he said. " I don't want to keep you 
 standing, if you can be more lively when seated. 
 Young limbs used to be different in my days. They 
 didn't fail like an old woman's." 
 
 With this encouraging invitation, I drew over the 
 chair, but, slight as I was, it gave an ominous creak 
 the moment my weight was brought to bear on it. 
 
 "You'll smash something yet," was uncle's com- 
 ment. " I know you can't rest without it." 
 
 " I certainly can't rest in avoiding it," I thought to 
 myself, for I sat in torture, afraid to stir or almost 
 breathe, lest chair and I should come down together. 
 
 " Now," said uncle, when he saw me thus critically 
 placed, " now I hope you're comfortable, miss, and 
 will be able to make yourself agreeable. What have
 
 TOLD IN THE NIGHT. 203 
 
 you all been doing at home of late ? Mischief, of 
 course but of what nature ?" 
 
 " I don't know, sir," I returned, " not having entered 
 into it. I don't take such an interest in boys' move- 
 ments as to follow them closely." 
 
 " Oh, they've been at something, then. You admit 
 that ?" and his eyes sparkled. 
 
 " Very probably, uncle ; but they are no longer 
 under my care. You will be glad to hear that. I 
 know I am glad to be able to tell it." 
 
 " Why, I thought you were very proud of your 
 post, Miss Ellen ? But ' pride comes before a fall.' I 
 suppose you had that ?" 
 
 He was so desperately sharp and shrewd it was 
 dreadful to talk to him, and I dared not even venture 
 on a gesture of dissent. 
 
 " George is the only quiet one among you," he pur- 
 sued. " Lucy is gentle and pretty, like her mother. 
 But then she cries." 
 
 " Perhaps if you saw more of George you would 
 think less of him," I exclaimed. " I don't believe he 
 would suit you at all." 
 
 His insatiable appetite came to mind, and the meagre 
 means for satisfying it in a household like this, and I 
 could scarcely restrain a smile. 
 
 "Now, what's that for?" said uncle. "What are 
 you sniggering about ?" 
 
 It was, of course, impossible to explain, yet evasion 
 was equally out of the question with those dagger-like
 
 204 M Y MO THERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 eyes fixed on me. I began to stammer something, 
 but a most fortunate interruption came. There was 
 a footstep in the passage, and it approached the door. 
 
 " There is somebody coming, sir," I exclaimed, and 
 gave a hazardous bound of relief. 
 
 "And somebody going," he rejoined, as he saw my 
 chair shake. 
 
 But I was lucky for once. It was a departure, not 
 a downfall, which was at hand. A tap was heard at 
 the door, and Willis looked in. 
 
 " Mr. Wynham has just arrived, sir," he announced. 
 " He would like to step up." 
 
 It was the signal for my release, and I was alert in 
 a moment. 
 
 " I knew you were off," said my uncle dryly. 
 " Well, good-bye to you, miss." 
 
 There is always an awkwardness in taking leave of 
 a gouty person. A shake of the hand is inadmissible, 
 and even a nearer approach is viewed with uneasi- 
 ness. I could only therefore give him a sort of 
 glance and nod of farewell, which I doubt if he at 
 all appreciated. 
 
 " There, there, run off," he ejaculated. " I know 
 you are in a hurry to be gone. You needn't stand 
 grimacing any more." 
 
 In this pleasant way the interview ended, and I 
 said to myself, as I flitted down the stairs, that my 
 mother's hopes of me and my assistance might be 
 laid aside at once. If uncle really cared for me at all,
 
 TOLD IN THE NIGHT. 205 
 
 as she imagined, he had such an extraordinary way of 
 showing it that it led only to intimidation, and I be- 
 came perfectly helpless in his presence. 
 
 When I reached the hall I found my mother stand- 
 ing there. She had my hat and jacket in her hand. 
 
 " Ellie," she said, " your father has brought the 
 children over for a drive. They are in the carriage 
 outside. But I wish them to return at once, and you 
 had better go with them. Your father will remain 
 with me, and Thomas can come back for us later in 
 the day." 
 
 With these words I was hurried away, but not very 
 much against my will. The ordeal of a second visit 
 to Uncle George would have been too much to face 
 at present ; the company of the boys even seemed 
 peaceful in comparison.
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 FRED'S ANNOUNCEMENT. 
 
 " The man that hails you Tom or Jack, 
 And proves, by thumping on your back, 
 
 His sense of your great merit, 
 Is such a friend that one had need 
 Be very much his friend indeed 
 To pardon, or to bear it." 
 
 COWPER. 
 
 ONCE outside the gates of the Manor-House, the 
 rush of life came back in full force. If there was a 
 questionable gloom within, there was light enough in 
 the merry mischievous glances which met me here. 
 The shadow of stillness which lay over the old 
 mansion flitted swiftly away in the presence of four 
 restless urchins. The carriage was full of them, and 
 they seemed to be deeply engaged in the lively 
 avocation of elbowing one another. When I ap- 
 peared, I was greeted with a sort of " Hail-stone 
 Chorus," for they all gave a "huzza" together; and 
 Dick, in an impulsive leap, turned his pocketful of 
 marbles over seat and steps.
 
 FRED'S ANNOUNCEMENT. 207 
 
 " Nell, back again !" he cried, almost choking me 
 with a clutch. " And as red and hearty as ever. If 
 that doesn't beat everything !" 
 
 " And pray, what did you expect ?" I said, battling 
 him off. " A ghost was it ?" 
 
 " He thought you'd see one, at all events," put in 
 Merylle. " He was drawing her on the black board 
 last night." 
 
 " Oh, it's a lady, then ?" I rejoined. 
 
 " Of course Uncle George's wife, you know ;" and 
 Dick made an expressive face, which left more of the 
 whites of his eyes visible than was at all agreeable. 
 
 "Well, you had better all sit down now," I began, 
 with a resumption of authority. "We are to drive 
 home at once." 
 
 "Without mother?" gasped George, and a pallor 
 stole into his cheeks. 
 
 I shook him into position almost crossly. His want 
 of trust in me was irritating, and I took my revenge 
 for it. 
 
 " Yes, without your mother," I said ; " and if you 
 don't take care, you will be without your dinner too, 
 which would be something worse to you. I have no 
 idea of your setting up a wail whenever I have the 
 charge of you." 
 
 George looked cowed. The threat was a terrible one, 
 and though tears were ready at first, he restrained 
 himself with a great effort. 
 
 We were just off, Thomas had given a curl to his
 
 208 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 whip, and all was in readiness, when a quick step came 
 behind. Lucy was with me on the back seat, and had 
 sidled so close up, that a free space was left on her side. 
 In a moment it was filled ; some one had sprung into 
 it, and, to my surprise, I found the intruder to be Fred. 
 
 " I say, there's room here," he cried. " That will 
 never do. Nature, you know, abhors a vacuum eh, 
 Nell ?" 
 
 " Where did you drop from ?" I murmured. " You 
 gave me such a start." 
 
 " Better than for you to get the start of me. I ran 
 all the way from home by the fields, reckoning to catch 
 you up. Didn't I just shave it close ?" 
 
 " And what about your studies ? Were you not with 
 Mr. Locke to-day ?" 
 
 " Heyday ! she hasn't heard yet !" was the reply. 
 " Who's to tell her? Which of you'll break it ?" and 
 he gave Merylle such a nudge, that she fell full upon 
 Dick. The latter could take a shove, however, without 
 taking offence, and his eyes twinkled at Fred's speech. 
 
 " What have you to say ?" I demanded dryly. "Any- 
 thing you can tell I am quite equal to hear." 
 
 The reward for this speech was a clap on the back. 
 
 "Really, Fred, you are intolerable!" I exclaimed. 
 " I hate to be hit that way, and you know it well." 
 
 " Poor old Nell !" was the response. " There's a 
 harder blow to come ; but cheer up ; I'll give it as light 
 as I can. I assure you, it took my breath away at 
 first, but I thought of you in a jiffy :
 
 FRED'S ANNOUNCEMENT. 209 
 
 "'And Pity filled up 
 
 The whole of the cup.' " 
 
 " What are you beating the bush about ?" I broke in 
 angrily. " I don't believe you have a thing to tell." 
 
 " Haven't I just ! There was news at the cottage this 
 morning, if nowhere else. Mr. Locke's gone." 
 
 " Mr. Locke gone !" I ejaculated. 
 
 " There ! I knew it would be a shock. I'd have let 
 you down easy, but you wouldn't have it." 
 
 I felt my face crimsoning from vexation. Fred on 
 this track was too dreadful. His tongue in motion was 
 worse than his hands. No one could say what run it 
 might take. A stroke on the shoulder was nothing to it. 
 
 " Where is he gone to ?" I asked coolly that is, my 
 voice was steady, if my face was red. 
 
 " Shall I tell her ?" and Fred winked at Merylle. 
 
 The latter had her round eyes fixed on me, and the 
 little smile in them irritated me almost beyond en- 
 durance. However, I bore it like the rest. It was the 
 best policy. 
 
 " Has anybody a scent-bottle first ?" pursued Fred 
 solicitously. "Just you look, Merylle." 
 
 " Keep your secret to yourselves," I said disdainfully. 
 " It seems to interest and amuse you supremely. I 
 have not the least anxiety to hear it." 
 
 "Why,you asked yourself. Now,didn't she, Merylle?" 
 and Fred turned eagerly to his ally. " However, I 
 think it right, in any case, you should know, and I'm 
 the best to break it to you. He's off, Nell. Don't 
 
 14
 
 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 faint dead away if you can help it. He's off, I say, to 
 marry a charming young lady." 
 
 " Indeed !" I ejaculated. " How cruel to keep me in 
 suspense about nothing. I knew that a good while 
 ago." 
 
 " You couldn't have known he was gone, for he only 
 left this morning." 
 
 " Well, that he was to go. Is it possible none of you 
 were aware he was engaged ?" 
 
 " Oh, we were not so much in his secrets as you, 
 Miss Nell. We couldn't expect that." And Fred 
 emphasised the statement with a pinch. 
 
 I didn't like it, of course, but that his fingers were 
 at work again was a good sign in one way. It pointed 
 to a certain baffled state of his more refined tactics. 
 Teasing was indispensable to him, but when he 
 descended to this lower style of production he be- 
 came less formidable. 
 
 " As for me, I'm adrift again," continued Fred, with 
 an aggrieved air, or the pretence of it, rather. "Just 
 as I'm shooting ahead, I'm pulled up with a curb. 
 Father won't take me up now. He says it's not 
 worth while for a week." 
 
 "A week! That's a short honeymoon," I inter- 
 posed. 
 
 " Uncommon short !" and his eyes sparkled, while 
 a brisk appeal to Merylle for an echo sent her head 
 into my lap. 
 
 " I wish you would go on the box, Fred !" I ex-
 
 FRED'S ANNOUNCEMENT. 
 
 claimed. " There's no room here for any one, at least, 
 who uses his elbows like you. I really can't bear it." 
 " Ah, Nell ! you're not what you were. Your 
 nerves are shaken, I'm afraid. Many a push you've 
 given and taken before now." 
 
 I was half tempted to show him that my powers 
 were unabated still, but a battle in a carriage with 
 excitable urchins on all sides was too much to ad- 
 venture. It would have been decidedly undignified, 
 if not desperately unsafe. I tried to find some other 
 outlet for their excitement, and to turn the conversa- 
 tion more immediately from myself. 
 
 "When did Aunt Rachel leave?" I asked of 
 Merylle. But Dick forestalled her answer. 
 
 "This morning!" he cried. "/ saw her off. I 
 burst a paper bag the last thing in her ear, and didn't 
 she give a leap." 
 
 " And a shriek too," added Merylle. " It was worse 
 than the whistle of the engine." 
 
 It appeared that they had deposited her at the 
 station on their way to the Manor-House, Willis 
 having sent a message to my father over night, which 
 made him anxious to be with us early at Uncle 
 George's. 
 
 Lucy, who had been very quiet up to this point, 
 gave an unexpected start at this moment, followed by 
 a cry. 
 
 " What have you done now, Fred ?" I demanded. 
 " Could you not even let the little one alone ?" 
 
 142
 
 2 1 2 MY MO THER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 " I never touched her," he declared. 
 
 But as the affirmation was accompanied by a 
 sudden seizure of her in his arms I did not put much 
 confidence in it. 
 
 "What is the matter with the puss?" he began 
 coaxingly. " Who dared to tease it ?" 
 
 " I think it was George," said Lucy. 
 
 " George !" we all ejaculated, for, whatever he was,, 
 he was scarcely aggressive. 
 
 " Yes ; some one got his hand into my pocket," she 
 pursued, " and pulled out my comfy-bag. I'se sure it 
 was George." 
 
 And so we were all. The evidence was conclu- 
 sive now, and I gave him a good shake. Hardly 
 had I done so than comfits rolled over us in every 
 direction, and George stood convicted at once. 
 When he set up a wail of denial, it seemed only to 
 blacken the offence, and even Fred interfered then. 
 
 "Now, George," he began. But at that opening 
 Dick clapped an arm round the culprit. 
 
 " Don't howl, old chap," he said ; " but speak up, 
 and stick to your own. It wasn't he at all," he added 
 with a caper. " It was I did it for fun, you know !" 
 and he appeared quite proud of the achievement. 
 
 I was relieved to find that we were coming within 
 sight of home now, for terrible as were the children 
 on any ground, this limited scene of action only in- 
 creased their nimbleness. They surpassed any 
 rational conception or calculation. The closer the
 
 FRED'S ANNOUNCEMENT. 
 
 213 
 
 quarters, the wider the scope for their ingenuity in 
 mischief. 
 
 Early in the afternoon my father and mother 
 returned, and brought reassuring tidings of Uncle 
 George ; that is, he was as sharp and strong as ever, 
 softened in no way, but ensconced once more in his old 
 attitude of resoluteness. 
 
 Fred had holidays now ; but as no one mentioned 
 Mr. Locke, or alluded to his absence, I naturally 
 abstained from questions. Fred was such a tease, he 
 made me tremble " where no fear was." I was more 
 afraid of him than of Aunt Rachel, as regarded the 
 subject-matter of gentlemen, and that was saying a 
 good deal. 
 
 A few days later, my father got his morning paper 
 as usual with the letter-bag, and when he had finished 
 the perusal he laid it down on the breakfast-table. I 
 was next to him and took it up, not that I was 
 especially curious about anything, but I generally 
 liked to give a glance at the " Births, Deaths, and 
 Marriages." In the latter column a name attracted 
 me now. It was that of Locke, and I grew a little 
 eager at once. Had I known that Fred was peering 
 over my shoulder all the time, I would have been 
 more careful to repress the tokens of excitement. I 
 would scarcely have given such a quick rustle of the 
 paper as I flattened its surface ; nor have let my eye 
 light up with interest. The apt combination of Locke 
 and Truefitt was the heading of the announcement,
 
 214 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 and, as I proceeded to particulars, I all but uttered 
 an exclamation. 
 
 This is the substance of what I saw : " By the Rev. 
 Arthur Locke brother of the bride Alice, only 
 daughter of the late Robert Locke, Esq., to Edward 
 Truefitt," etc., etc. 
 
 " Why, it's his sister that's married !" I cried in- 
 voluntarily. 
 
 At the same moment I felt myself seized from be- 
 hind. That dreadful Fred had me in a hug. 
 
 " Hurrah !" he burst out. " There's a smile at last ! 
 The first for three days. She's been as cross as can 
 be poor old Nell ! But no wonder, I felt for her 
 myself." 
 
 At this point his oration was cut short by a des- 
 perate effort on my part, which sent him spinning 
 backwards, and I heard a pretended crash of his head 
 against the wall. 
 
 " Don't get violent, Nell," he murmured. " Even joy 
 must be kept in bounds." 
 
 " What are you both about ?" interposed my mother, 
 now. " You mustn't be rude, Fred." 
 
 "Rude? Why, I was only jubilant. She thought 
 Mr. Locke had gone off to get married." 
 
 " Thought ? You said it ?" I broke in. 
 
 " Did I ? I told you he had started to marry a 
 young lady. And hasn't he done it ? Who tied the 
 knot?" 
 
 " Really, you are too silly," I exclaimed. " Your
 
 FRED'S ANNOUNCEMENT. 215 
 
 jokes may amuse yourself, but no one else. Mr. 
 Locke is engaged, as every one knows, and it did not 
 give me any particular concern whether his wedding- 
 day approached or not." 
 
 " Who says he's engaged ?" was the reply. 
 
 " Why, the rector announced it, when he came here. 
 Aunt Rachel told me so," and I turned carelessly 
 away. 
 
 " It was all a cram," said Fred, and made a fresh 
 dive at me by way of affirmation. "He denies it 
 himself, and I suppose that's enough. Who'd mind 
 Aunt Rachel ?" 
 
 At this instant a happy summons from his father 
 relieved us of Fred's presence, and the subject was 
 dropped. But I must admit that when I found my- 
 self soon afterwards alone in the breakfast-room I 
 came back on the origin of it, and taking up the paper 
 once more I cast another glance on the interesting 
 paragraph. Fred's absurdities gave a ludicrous tone 
 to everything, and sentiment could scarcely live in 
 -their atmosphere. And yet there was some vein now 
 of indefinable pleasure in my thoughts which was new 
 and puzzling. It was too deep down for him to have 
 penetrated to, and too shadowy yet for even myself to 
 analyse.
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 THE YOUNG IDEA. 
 
 " O, yet we trust that somehow good 
 Will be the final goal of ill." 
 
 TENNYSON. 
 
 AGAIN the day for my appearance at the village- 
 school had passed over, and again I had forgotten it. 
 But this time I was scarcely to blame. I had been 
 at the Manor-House on that morning, and, full of 
 other thoughts and duties, I could not have attended 
 to this engagement, even had it come to mind. The 
 rector and Mr. Locke had arranged that each lady 
 who undertook the office of visiting and examining 
 the children should have her own day in the week for 
 the purpose, so that in this way there was a regular 
 and continuous inspection of the school. 
 
 It was on a Saturday that I had seen the mar- 
 riage announcement in the paper, and on the following 
 Wednesday I set out a little before twelve o'clock for 
 the school. This was my day for attendance, and I 
 determined to neglect it no longer. It may be sup-
 
 THE YOUNG IDEA. 217 
 
 posed that I had no feeling of reluctance to encounter 
 in the matter, having been so confident formerly re- 
 specting my assumption of a similar task. But this 
 was not the case. The sense of failure which was as- 
 sociated with my late efforts was a depressing intro- 
 duction to any new undertaking. The glamour of 
 power and prestige was gone. The harsh reality of 
 the thing remained, claiming courage and exertion, 
 without the fairer features coming to view of pleasure 
 or triumph. Furthermore, though it may not be 
 imagined, I had some shyness to conquer in a pro- 
 ceeding of the kind. With our own wild tribe, of 
 course, I was quite at home in every sense of the word. 
 It was a different affair to meet rows of curious eyes 
 fixed scanningly on my face, and to feel that every 
 blush called up there by nervousness was commented 
 on and criticised. However, I set forth, as I have 
 said, armed with a gossamer veil, and something as 
 unsubstantial, I am afraid, in the way of fortitude. I 
 know the veil went up in a puff of wind just as I was 
 opening the schoolroom door, and I entered with 
 deepening cheeks and a most trying sensation of in- 
 security. 
 
 The schoolmistress, Miss Manning, was so calm and 
 composed I took a dislike to her at once. Superi- 
 ority is always distasteful. Then, when she made 
 the whole company of scholars rise in a body and 
 drop a curtsey down to the ground, she overwhelmed 
 me entirely. What was I to do in response? At
 
 218 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 least I must say something. But my " Good-morning, 
 children," sounded so hoarse and unnatural that I felt 
 my face getting redder and redder. I proceeded 
 nevertheless to business. Mr. Locke had given me a 
 hint to pay especial regard to the Scripture lessons, 
 and I asked therefore to have a class formed for the 
 purpose. But as I was handed to a chair, and saw 
 the urchins with important air, and books in hand, 
 gathering fast and close around me, my heart set off 
 at a gallop, which I would fain have followed with my 
 feet, and made my escape then and there. Desertion 
 however, at this stage would have been too igno- 
 minious, and I nerved myself for a commencement. 
 I thought I had better begin solemnly. 
 
 " Now, children, I hope you are going to be very 
 good and quiet with me," I said, and essayed a glance 
 round the circle. 
 
 The mistress, who was just at my elbow, interposed 
 here. 
 
 " I think, madam, you will find them orderly and 
 attentive. Their training is not considered deficient." 
 
 The speech headed by the " madam " was enough 
 to overawe me again, and only that I felt annoyance, 
 it would have done so. But ever so little anger is 
 sufficient to put timidity to flight, and this interference 
 worked the effect. I did not want to have a prompter 
 or critic at my side, and I intimated as politely as I 
 could that I was satisfied with the arrangement of the 
 class, and that I would not detain her from her duties
 
 THE YOUNG IDEA. 219- 
 
 with the rest of the scholars. She did not withdraw, 
 however, for a full minute, and during that time I 
 occupied myself with turning over the leaves of the 
 reading-book I had been proffered and making mental 
 comments on the unpleasantness of a well-regulated 
 mind. I suppose Miss Manning had such, for I heard 
 high accounts of her from all quarters ; but I should 
 infinitely have preferred, as a matter of personal taste, 
 a little thoughtful consideration. 
 
 At last I was alone that is, I had a formidable 
 flock of nine facing me, but no one at my back. I 
 plunged boldly into business then, and essayed an 
 examination in the prescribed portion of Scripture. I 
 found the most of the children stupid or stolid, but 
 one or two showed a surprising aptitude for inquisi- 
 tiveness. They were sharp and prying beyond even 
 what my trying experience might have led me to 
 expect. Soon they had turned the tables upon me. 
 My queries were nowhere. It was they who were the 
 interrogators, and they put me through such a cate- 
 gory of queer puzzling questions that I grew helpless 
 with confusion. I saw my mistake in a moment. I 
 should have stayed the " rising " with a firm hand at 
 once. But I had encouraged it so far as to give 
 responses and explanations at first, and now to draw 
 back was to stand convicted of ignorance. Suddenly 
 I shut up the book. 
 
 " That will do for to-day," I said. " Bring me your 
 geography lesson now."
 
 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 I felt that I should be safer on a secular subject, 
 where a haphazard answer might be given less cul- 
 pably, if none better were forthcoming. I ran them 
 through their shires and principal towns with safety, 
 and then, by way of enlivenment, I set them two or three 
 " buried cities " to disinter. They were so hopeless at 
 these that I grew quite elated. I had them well in 
 hand here, and before closing, I left them a few 
 maxims to reflect upon in leisure hours : 
 
 " We go astray and err year by year." 
 
 " Remember links of the past." 
 
 " Learning always opens the mind." 
 
 " We hinder by too much advice." 
 
 " Eggs are good for omelettes." 
 
 "An order being given, I certainly expect atten- 
 tion." 
 
 I doubt if Miss Manning quite approved of the pro- 
 ceeding, but really anything which makes children 
 think) is more desirable, I should say, than a rigid 
 adherence to the " parrot system." I had just been 
 exercised in a somewhat similar way myself, so my 
 mind was naturally running on this subject. That 
 interesting young lady, Miss Julia Horton, had pre- 
 sented me with the following poem, entitled " A 
 Village Sketch," with the intimation that thirty-six 
 deceased celebrities were buried therein. I was proud 
 of my prowess in bringing them to life, or to light 
 rather, and had entertained others with the puzzle. 
 The lines ran thus :
 
 THE YOUNG IDEA. 
 
 " Close by a clover field in green arrayed, 
 That skirts the moor edged in with pleasant shade, 
 An orchard lies, where wake at spring's behest 
 The birds their sweet new tones, while trees fair drest 
 In blossoms pink and white their scent distil. 
 Beyond the lambkins play upon the hill, 
 Where later, sweet as sugar, ricks of hay 
 The cow perceives and tempted is to stray. 
 Old ' Ned/ too, burns to snatch a mouthful sweet, 
 And Dick ensures to Tom a jolly treat 
 In tumbling 'mongst the grass, till their rude foe 
 The farmer comes, who, odd enough, won't know 
 Why boys to leapfrog erst were ever drawn 
 Alas ! he'll eye them soon, and clear the lawn. 
 
 " Where the long rays across the pathway fall 
 John's cottage stands a place well known to all. 
 A somewhat crabbed man is John, whose age 
 The thoughts of far-past eras must engage. 
 Long since he's taken sides with ancient ways, 
 And, odd and dry, denies to moderns praise. 
 His hens to neat made fowl-pen turn their wing 
 When western evening clouds soft stillness bring. 
 His dog, as out he yelps defiance loud 
 To scamp belligerent 'mid the school-boy crowd, 
 Disturbs the song old smiths across the way 
 Hum everlastingly throughout the day. 
 
 " The parson puts his pen serenely by, 
 He hears within his manse : swift stops to cry, 
 'That drone will make me nap O, peace I crave !' 
 Then thinking ' Aye, 'tis folly thus to slave 
 And to waste elegance of style on boors 
 (John's one who never comes within church doors). 
 My words worth much, that me much labour cost, 
 Now all erratic to the winds are tost, 
 And every line I add is only lost.' " 
 
 I did not, of course, attempt to worry the brains of 
 the children with this production, since they would
 
 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 scarcely have understood it in any sense of the word. 
 Even had they been dexterous enough to extricate 
 the names of poets and authors, etc., from their in- 
 volved position, I doubt if they would have recog- 
 nised their claim to any special remembrance. The 
 geography practice was simpler, shorter, and more 
 after their " lights," and with this I contented myself 
 and them for the present. 
 
 I had just quitted the school-house, which stood 
 within a pretty enclosure of flowers and evergreens, 
 and was going along the walk towards the gate, when 
 the latch of the latter was lifted. At the same instant 
 a gentleman entered. I advanced a step or two, and 
 found myself confronting Mr. Locke. I had thought 
 him from home still, so a little flush of surprise was 
 quite pardonable. As we shook hands, I said : 
 
 " Congratulate me, Mr. Locke, on having paid my 
 first visit here. The ' force of habit ' which you spoke 
 of may come into play now." 
 
 " I hope it was an agreeable one to begin with ?" he 
 inquired. 
 
 " No, no, I can't say that," was my response. " I 
 found the forms regular, the stillness perfect, the mis- 
 tress more so 
 
 " And pray what would you have had, Miss Wyn- 
 ham ?" he interposed laughingly ; " noise and turbu- 
 lence ?" 
 
 " Yes, I think they would be better. I could say 
 or do something then. My voice would not be so 
 alarmingly audible."
 
 THE YOUNG IDEA. 223 
 
 " I don't see why you need be afraid of it," said the 
 curate. " For my part, there are so many closed ears 
 in the world, I must confess I find it pleasant to be 
 attended to." 
 
 " Oh, if you have matter and manner to trust to, 
 that is a different thing, Mr. Locke. But I am adrift 
 at once. What have I to impart that could enlighten 
 any one ? Miss Manning soars far above me. She 
 could put her pupils through their facings far more 
 efficiently than I could." 
 
 " Possibly," he smiled. " Still, a lady's presence is 
 an encouragement and incentive to her in her labours, 
 to say nothing of the little ones." 
 
 " I don't believe she thought much of me," I said ; 
 " though she gave me an unexpected title of dignity. 
 I wish she would not call me ' madam,' Mr. Locke ; it 
 makes me feel so old." 
 
 " Perhaps she did not know whom she had the 
 honour of addressing. I must tell her it was Miss 
 Wynham." And with these words he was hastening 
 away when I ventured to stop him. 
 
 " Ought I not to say something to you, by way of 
 congratulation?" I began. "We saw an announcement 
 in the paper which pointed to some gay festivities in 
 which you have had an active part. We were glad 
 you had such pleasant occasion for your absence." 
 
 " Thank you very much," he said. " My sister has 
 been engaged for some time, but all has ended hap- 
 pily now. Her husband has got a good appointment,
 
 224 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 and they are to be settled near London. She is my 
 only sister, as you may have noticed, and since our 
 father's death she lived the greater part of the year 
 with me. I am glad she is still to be within reach, 
 for I feared, at one time, she might have to go abroad 
 on her marriage." 
 
 " Had I known her, of course I should express 
 more," I added with my final good-bye. " But when 
 another event comes off you will have all our con- 
 gratulations." 
 
 I don't know what made me say this. It is quite 
 true I put no faith in Fred's nonsense, and felt that 
 the rector and Aunt Rachel should be credited before 
 him. At the same time, the words came out un- 
 awares, and I was sensible the next instant that they 
 had a tinge of mingled forwardness and inquisitiveness 
 on my lips. When Mr. Locke turned away, with just 
 one quick glance and then a quiet smile, I was over- 
 whelmed with a very proper confusion, and would have 
 given a good deal to have recalled what a mere talka- 
 tive instinct had led to. 
 
 It is a most unfortunate peculiarity of mine that I 
 never throw off stiffness and become easy and expan- 
 sive, than I have to encounter regret for some incon- 
 siderate saying. If I could only attain the due mean 
 between primness and recklessness, I should look 
 more complacently on myself, whatever others might 
 think of me. 
 
 On reaching home, I found my mother on the
 
 THE YOUNG IDEA. 225 
 
 avenue, and she joined me at once. I told her I had 
 been at the school, and she asked me if I had met Mr. 
 Locke. He had just called at the Lodge, she added, to 
 see about Fred, and to say that he should be quite 
 ready to recommence study with him on the following 
 morning. 
 
 " Yes, I saw him," I replied, " as I was coming out 
 of the school-house. I mentioned his sister's wedding 
 to him. There was no harm in that, I suppose ?" 
 
 " No, Ellie. I said a few congratulatory words too." 
 
 " But I am afraid I blundered afterwards," I pursued. 
 When anything is on my mind I always like to confess 
 it. " I asked him something about his own engagement." 
 
 " That was certainly rather strange on your part. 
 How could you do that ?" questioned my mother. 
 
 " I don't know what made 'me," I blurted out, " ex- 
 cept that I am silly and stupid. I suppose he would 
 add ' impertinent ' too." 
 
 " We are but late acquaintances," said my mother 
 quietly ; " and as he is a new-comer to the neighbour- 
 hood, whose family is quite unknown to us, any in- 
 quiries on our part into his personal concerns are cer- 
 tainly uncalled for. I have heard it stated decidedly 
 that he is engaged, but I should never think of probing 
 him on the matter myself." 
 
 " Of course you would not. But, then, you have 
 some discretion, mother, which I am afraid your 
 luckless little daughter has not," and I stole my hand 
 within her arm. 
 
 IS
 
 226 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 " Now, Ellie, you are talking nonsense," she said. 
 " You are quite old enough to have a clear notion of 
 the fitness of things, and I believe you have it too, 
 only you let your tongue sometimes run before your 
 thoughts." 
 
 She was so right in this, that my heart gave a quick 
 throb of assent ; and yet, though I could condemn my- 
 self, I did not like another to do it Whenever I made 
 an admission of error I expected somehow to be re- 
 assured, not reproved. But we may look for many a 
 thing without either deserving or getting it. 
 
 " I suppose you have remembered that your eigh- 
 teenth birthday comes next month?" pursued my 
 mother presently. " I wish you to have some gra- 
 tification then that may be associated with it in 
 the future. I leave it to yourself to decide on the 
 kind. We will talk of it again when the time comes 
 nearer." 
 
 We were still on the avenue as she spoke, but ere I 
 could answer her, a clatter of hoofs was heard, and 
 Fred, mounted on a black pony, passed a turning in 
 the drive, and almost rode over us in his heedless im- 
 petuosity. This pony was a new acquisition ; in fact, 
 it was scarcely his yet. He was to try it, in the first 
 instance, before my father concluded the purchase. 
 
 My mother called to him quickly, and he pulled up 
 with the same recklessness, endangering us as much, 
 or rather more, by this backward motion than in his 
 first charge.
 
 THE YOUNG IDEA. 227 
 
 " I am afraid that specimen won't do, Fred," said my 
 mother as we saved ourselves with a spring. " I must 
 certainly give my vote against purchase in this case." 
 
 Fred was off his steed in a second, one arm thrown 
 over its neck, and another around his mother. His 
 funny, coaxing face was brought close up to hers. 
 
 " Now, mother mine, don't say a word," he pleaded. 
 " I never saw you or that witch of a Nell, and the 
 avenue has so many twistings in it, it would take an eel 
 to manage it. Wait till you see me on the open 
 ground !" 
 
 " But it is here where you must pass the oftenest 
 I should like to judge of your powers," she returned. 
 " You may gallop with safety to yourself on the ' open 
 ground,' as you term it, but, in the meantime, are we 
 all to be ridden over on your road to it ?" 
 
 "I will go like a mouse," said Fred. "I will creep 
 along, in future, looking and listening at every step, 
 but don't let the governor think I've made a muff 
 of myself. I was a little giddy, but ' Prince ' can be 
 managed. It wasn't his fault, at all events." 
 
 " If it was yours then, I expect more caution again. 
 Fred, Fred, you are a sad rogue !" 
 
 This was added as comment on a closer approach 
 of his merry eyes, and a quick kiss as he released her, 
 and bounded into the saddle again. 
 
 " What spirits he has !" murmured my mother. 
 " He reminds me every day more strongly of his poor 
 cousin of what he was, I mean." 
 
 152
 
 228 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 " Have you heard anything more of him of when 
 he may be expected ?" I ventured. 
 
 " No, Ellie ; and it is probable we may not do so 
 till he comes in person. Your uncle George is the 
 same as ever now ; I don't know how we are to work 
 upon him." 
 
 " He says he likes our George," I began. " Would 
 it be well to bring him over next ? I really can't dis- 
 cover in any way his partiality for me." 
 
 " I am afraid you have none for him that is the 
 worst of it," said my mother. " I can scarcely blame 
 you ; still if you would try and show less constraint 
 in his presence it would make a great difference with 
 him. Like most people who are feared, he dislikes to 
 have the feeling shown in shrinking or distrust. I 
 believe it to be one deeply-rooted cause of his hard- 
 ness against his son, that the latter failed in confidence 
 towards him at first. When his confessions of debt 
 and difficulty were made, the plea of fear formed no 
 excuse in the father's eyes for his long concealment." 
 
 " But what can he expect, mother ?" I asked. " If 
 he puts us in awe of him, we must show it in some 
 way. He claims candour equally with everything 
 else. It is hard to know what to do." 
 
 My mother could scarcely dissent from this ; yet in 
 her anxious longing to incline me to more ease and 
 friendliness, she would fain have combated the impres- 
 sion. I spared her the effort, however, by a sudden 
 assurance on my part.
 
 THE YOUNG IDEA. 229 
 
 " I will try again," I exclaimed, " and perhaps I 
 may succeed better. I think uncle had still a twinge 
 of the gout the morning I saw him, and I believe 
 that makes everybody terribly cross." 
 
 We had reached the house as I spoke, and the 
 children's play-hour being ended, my mother had to 
 go in and resume her duties in the schoolroom. I 
 betook myself to gardening, and was first interrupted 
 in my work by the sound of the luncheon-bell.
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 MERYLLE'S MYSTERY. 
 
 " Flowers are lovely ; Love is flower-like ; 
 
 Friendship is a sheltering tree ; 
 O the joys, that came down shower-like, 
 Of friendship, love, and liberty, 
 
 Ere I was old !" 
 
 COLERIDGE. 
 
 A PAUSE seems to come in life at times. The days 
 pass by unnumbered ; we have done nothing to 
 mark them in thought or action, and we let them flit 
 from us like blank leaves lacking the ineffaceable 
 writing which makes time a clear reality to our gaze. 
 It might be imagined that in a household of children 
 this dreamy abstraction could scarcely exist. I sup- 
 pose, indeed, it would be impossible for any one to 
 fall into it who was brought into constant contact 
 with them. But I was relieved now from that 
 especial strain, and had more leisure to lapse into 
 indolence, or inertness, if disposed thereto. 
 
 There had been a certain amount of excitement 
 connected with the visit to Uncle George, and the
 
 MER YLLE'S MYSTER Y. 23 1 
 
 disclosure which followed on it. That over, and 
 matters having returned to their ordinary routine 
 again, I missed something at first, and finally was too 
 absent and uninterested to remark anything. 
 
 It was in this way that my mother took me quite 
 by surprise when she began one morning : 
 
 " Ellie, can you tell me what is wrong with Merylle ? 
 She doesn't look well, and there is some trouble over 
 her which I can't make out. She is ready to cry at a 
 word, and, she is generally so merry, the change is all 
 the stranger." 
 
 " I ? I did not notice this," I murmured ; but 
 Fred, who chanced to overhear us, broke in with 
 another statement. 
 
 " Right enough, mother !" he said. " Merylle's 
 gone to pieces like a gimcrack. There'll not be a 
 bit left of her soon. Nell never sees a thing, unless 
 it's her own face in the glass." 
 
 " I can see a good deal of rudeness in you," I re- 
 torted. " It doesn't require reflection to show that." 
 
 " Pray don't begin a strife of words," interposed 
 my mother. " There is some matter really amiss 
 now, I fear. It would be well if you both thought of 
 it instead of running into contention." 
 
 " I've thought of it," exclaimed Fred. " I've gone 
 over it in my mind till I feel that I'm wearing down 
 myself. But it's no use. Merylle says nothing, and 
 if she won't tell me, it's something awful, you may lay 
 any money."
 
 232 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 " I intend to question her," said my mother. " But 
 I beg you won't interfere, Fred. You turn all into a 
 jest, and there is a serious side to life, whatever you. 
 may know of it. I believe Merylle is really fretting 
 now, and she is not ill I can see that so there must 
 be a hidden cause for regret." 
 
 Just as she was speaking, Merylle herself came 
 into the morning-room to look for a book, and my 
 mother called her over to her. She signed to Fred 
 at the same time to go away, but I soon perceived 
 that he had not retreated farther than the outer 
 threshold of the door, and that he held the latter in 
 his hand, while an eye gleamed in through the partial 
 aperture. 
 
 My mother was seated near the window, and she 
 took Merylle's hand in hers. 
 
 " Is there anything wrong with my little girl ?" she 
 began kindly. But at her tone, her mere glance, 
 Merylle collapsed and broke into sobs. " I am afraid 
 there is," pursued my mother, tightening her clasp. 
 " But whatever it may be trouble of your own 
 making, or of another's you will tell all to me to- 
 your mother will you not ?" 
 
 Merylle, still weeping, gave some answer which was- 
 inaudible, and the earnest pleading had to be continued. 
 
 " My dear child, you must let me hear what it is," 
 said my mother. "Don't fear to confess. You will- 
 be much happier when we know." 
 
 It was plain from Merylle's manner that the weight
 
 MERYLLES MYSTERY. 235 
 
 of the misdeed lay on herself, and that it was the 
 sting of conscience which had been so hard to bear. 
 The questions therefore were put so as to aid her in 
 an admission, but her tears still held her back from 
 speech. I heard the handle of the door give a little 
 squeak just then, and my mother looking up caught 
 Fred's eye. 
 
 " I told you to go away," she exclaimed. But 
 before she could continue, he had stolen in and stood 
 on the threshold. 
 
 " Do let me stay !" he begged. " I won't put you out, 
 I am really anxious about this, and Merylle knows 
 it. Don't cry so, old girl," he pursued. " No one will 
 be angry. Mother's better than any of us. You're 
 safe to tell her anything." 
 
 " Really, Merylle," I interposed now, " these sobs are 
 too much, and every one so kind to you. One would 
 think you had committed murder." 
 
 At that word the wail became louder. Whatever 
 chord it touched, the effect was terrible. Merylle flung 
 herself almost on her knees by her mother's lap, and 
 broke into a perfect torrent of tears. 
 
 " Good gracious ! she's done it !" said Fred. 
 
 His face at the moment was too ludicrous. He had 
 thrown up his hands, and the look of absurd horror 
 he put on made me smile despite of myself. 
 
 This was the signal for a more grotesque grimace, 
 but he finished himself off then and there. He was 
 ordered peremptorily from the room, and a hint was-
 
 234 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 given to me to follow. He made no resistance when 
 he saw he was to have company, and scarcely were we 
 outside the door, than he caught me round the waist, 
 and ended a twirl with a span of my arm and a sort 
 of contemptuous pinch. 
 
 " You were jealous, Nell !" he murmured, "jealous of 
 my poor, plump Merylle. You are as thin as a whip- 
 ping-post yourself, and you didn't care how she was 
 pulled down. You took no note of it." 
 
 " Don't be so silly, Fred," I returned. " You are 
 never out of scrapes with your nonsense. Mother is 
 really vexed now. This is an odd business altogether. 
 I wonder what Merylle can have done. Do you think 
 it is anything bad ?" 
 
 He twinkled an eye for all reply, and made some 
 pantomimic gesture expressive of the worst. 
 
 " But in earnest, Fred ?" I pursued. 
 
 " In dead, solemn earnest. What else is over the 
 chit ? She's not one to knock up a row about nothing. 
 Merylle was a regular brick. She's tumbled into some- 
 thing terrible ; you may take my word for it." 
 
 Presently we heard a door open. The conference 
 was over, Merylle had come out, and we caught the 
 sound of her foot running swiftly up the stairs. Fred 
 was alert in a second. He signed to me to remain 
 where I was, and stole off on tip-toe himself towards 
 the morning-room. I was often jealous of his influence 
 and power of persuasion with my mother. He ven- 
 tured where I would not, and the quiet decision of her
 
 MERYLLE S MYSTERY. 235 
 
 manner, which I found so immovable, was sometimes 
 relaxed in his case. 
 
 He was back with me again in a few minutes, and 
 his face was a picture of more comical dismay than ever. 
 
 " What is it ?" I exclaimed quickly. " What has she 
 done?" 
 
 He gave a long, low whistle, but as that reply was 
 not exactly satisfactory, I pressed for more explicit- 
 ness, and the story came out then. About a week be- 
 fore, " Patty," Dick's favourite white rabbit, had been 
 found dead in the hutch. There were suspicious marks 
 of a dog's teeth in its neck, and Dick, after many ques- 
 tionings and lamentations, had decided that " Bounce," 
 the retriever, was the culprit, and had punished him 
 severely. One of the rails of the hutch had got broken 
 in some way, and he fancied the seizure had been made 
 in this manner. It turned out now that Merylle had 
 the guilt of this catastrophe on her conscience. She 
 had long pined to have possession of the pretty white 
 pet for an hour's play. But Dick had prohibited the 
 pleasure, having heard that it was bad for rabbits to be 
 handled and carried about. Merylle proceeded, there- 
 fore, to action on her own account. Finding Dick clear 
 of the premises one afternoon, she took out " Patty," 
 hid her in her apron, and carried her off to the planta- 
 tion. Here, seated in a favourite nook of hers amongst 
 the trees, she amused herself after her own heart, coaxed 
 and caressed the rabbit, and permitted it little scampers 
 within a boundary guarded closely by an encirclement
 
 236 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 of her arms. Suddenly there was a noise, a rush 
 through the underwood, and a strange dog came in 
 sight. With a frightened bound " Patty " escaped from 
 her, and was seized the next instant in the dog's teeth. 
 Merylle rescued it at the risk of a bite to herself, but it 
 was frightened to death, and its gambols were over for 
 that day and for ever. In tears and terror she carried 
 it back to the hutch, but when Dick visited it next his 
 pet was no more. His grief and consternation were so 
 great, that Merylle feared to tell. She avoided any 
 direct questions, which was the more easily done as 
 the marks on the rabbit were conclusive evidence of a 
 dog's work. But when she knew the retriever was 
 punished, and she was invited to attend the funeral of 
 poor " Patty," which Dick conducted with all due 
 honours, her heart smote her severely. Ever since she 
 declared she had been longing to tell, but she was so 
 little suspected, she could never find an opening for 
 confession. 
 
 " It wasn't like my Merylle," added Fred. " I never 
 knew her keep a thing on her mind before. But Dick 
 was in such an awful puff, and was so sure ' Bounce ' 
 was the criminal, he put none of us properly through 
 our catechism. One good query would have done 
 the work. Merylle would never evade that." 
 
 Fred was coming back here upon the instinctive 
 theory he held that a falsehood can be only a spoken 
 one. The system of reticence and evasion evidently 
 commended itself to his conscience as something safe
 
 MERYLLE'S MYSTERY. 237 
 
 and harmless. I suppose it was vain for Mr. Lo.cke 
 or any one else to preach to him at present till some 
 influence higher and stronger than ours raised the 
 standard of his views. 
 
 To me it has seemed that, shut in as we are by 
 difficulties and enigmas, it is impossible to judge here 
 of the full effect of our words and actions. We can- 
 not take upon ourselves the right of measuring the 
 good or the injury that they do. We have therefore 
 but to follow a true, straight course, knowing that it 
 is the best and surest one. To say that there are de- 
 viations from the line of uprightness which may be 
 held venial because they lead to no ill results is to say 
 and see further than we know. We can never tell 
 how a slight equivocation even may work evil for our- 
 selves or others. My dear mother had impressed this 
 feeling upon me early, and in Fred's case I am sure 
 her anxiety was as great for the same end, but his 
 impulses were so quick it was difficult to give any 
 tone other than one of liveliness to them at present. 
 He checked everything with merriment, and with the 
 sad story of the other Fred full in her mind, my 
 mother feared, no doubt, to estrange him from her in 
 the slightest degree. She sought for his confidence 
 before all else, but she felt that it could be only won 
 and held by affection. Aught that weakened that 
 would be fatal to her influence, which must work 
 silently and quietly towards a later formation of his 
 character.
 
 238 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 I forgot very often that he was nearly four years 
 my junior, and expected an amount of steadiness in 
 him which his mother was content to wait for. 
 
 The only punishment inflicted on Merylle now was 
 that of confession to Dick. My mother insisted on 
 this, and Merylle, having passed through that ordeal, 
 was in such a state of sobs and tears that she could 
 scarcely appear for the rest of the day. She' had 
 been fond herself of poor " Patty," and its tragic end, 
 combined with her later concealment, had awoke a 
 real distress in her heart. 
 
 Meanwhile, no further tidings had reached my 
 mother of the expected visitor. I had looked out 
 for him daily at first, but when my watchfulness was 
 not rewarded by news or event, I failed to have the 
 object of it so vividly in mind. In fact, Uncle George 
 and all concerning him rather faded from view now in 
 my engrossment with a more personal and particular 
 matter. This was the celebration of my birthday. 
 If my own choice had not been left free, I would 
 doubtless have had various fancies and longings on the 
 subject, but, like everything else, the moment I at- 
 tained what I wished for the illusion was gone, and it 
 became a source rather of anxiety than amusement. 
 I found it so difficult to decide the kind of festivity 
 I preferred that my brain was in a continual state 
 of puzzle. At one moment I verged towards an early 
 and outdoor celebration, which might possibly yield 
 greater enjoyment for the little ones ; and again, the
 
 MER YLLE'S MYSTER Y. 239 
 
 brilliancy of evening lights and dresses dazzled me, 
 and I thought I should shine more conspicuously in a 
 circle of the kind. At last I had to take Fred into 
 my counsels. This in itself may afford a sample of 
 the state of helplessness I was reduced to. I might 
 have well known the fire of fun and banter I should 
 open out upon myself. 
 
 As usual he gave a long whistle at first. Then he 
 eyed me all over, as if I were a natural curiosity, till I 
 felt myself growing red with annoyance. 
 
 " Heyday ! Nell coming out as a queen !" he ex- 
 claimed. " Won't she be a rum one ! Will you wear 
 a tinsel crown and perch on a throne eh, Nell ?" 
 
 "If you had your way you would make a fool of 
 me, of course," I said. " But I'm thankful to say I'm 
 not in your hands." 
 
 " Why, I thought you came to me for help that 
 you wanted a wrinkle or two ?" 
 
 " If I were so silly, you soon show me my mistake, 
 Fred. You are no earthly manner of use to any one. 
 My mother has given me leave to do as I like about 
 the amusements, and I imagined you might wish to 
 be taken into consultation. But the more I treat you 
 as a rational being, the more of a tease you become." 
 
 " Now, what have I done?" he pleaded. " I'm ready 
 to be your squire, your slave, your lackey, only don't 
 look so terribly cross. You will have your face quite 
 furrowed before the famous night. There's nothing 
 like a smile, Nelly. All will go smooth with it."
 
 240 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 To be told of a questionable shade on your brow is 
 scarcely the way to lighten it. However, as I was 
 really in a perplexity I was fain to ignore his remarks, 
 and presently he lent himself to something approach- 
 ing to seriousness. He put his curly head close to 
 mine, and with a very comical face declared that he 
 was in a brown study, and must be left to it for a 
 minute or two. 
 
 " But I don't know how anything bright is to be got 
 out of that," I said. 
 
 " I have it !" he exclaimed a't the instant. " I have 
 it, Nell. Let it be a charade-party. None of your 
 puppet-dances for me, where every one has the same 
 step and simper, and there's not a bit of honest fun in 
 the lot. It's too late in the autumn to be tripping it 
 outside, but give us something with a good dash about 
 it. I'll come out strong there, I'll promise you." 
 
 " It's needless to say that," I laughed. " Once your 
 excitement gets up you will have every one down. 
 Nobody could venture within ten yards of you." 
 
 " You're wrong there," he said. " I'm going to be 
 steady as a rock, see if I'm not. I have a word in my 
 eye this minute. It'll take an awful amount of heavy 
 thought to bring it to the front. But it'll do, and I'll 
 do it, I can tell you that much, Nell." 
 
 " What is it ?" I asked. 
 
 " Wait a bit, and you shall hear. I must give it a 
 run in my own mind first You might be for knocking 
 it over at once."
 
 MERYLLE' S MYSTERY. 241 
 
 Having gone so far as to ask advice of him, I found 
 that the fatal step involved another. I was compelled 
 to take it, or to come into more serious collision on 
 the matter than was desirable. Fred, pleased and 
 propitiated, might possibly be a help ; but, in the re- 
 verse case, a hindrance is scarcely the word to describe 
 the amount of mischief and mockery that might be 
 looked for. 
 
 A charade-party was consequently to be the order 
 of the night, and young people were included in the 
 invitation issued, the hour named for the entertainment 
 being an early one in consequence. 
 
 I had divers consultations and inspections now 
 with both Fred and Merylle. We were constantly 
 adding oddities of all kinds to a secret store we had 
 commenced, and we turned out so many old chests 
 and boxes in the lumber-closets upstairs that the 
 floors were literally strewn with ancient finery, and a 
 sort of ghost-like air was diffused around the scene 
 when we set the brocaded skirts on end, and sur- 
 mounted them with court feathers and wigs. 
 
 The dusk had stolen on us one afternoon while 
 amusing ourselves in this way, and finally Merylle and 
 Fred dashed off from me to have a run round the 
 lawn, to get rid of the dust, they said. I did not stay 
 long alone in the somewhat gloomy regions where I 
 was left. I merely waited to fold up some of the 
 more delicate tissues which Fred had been winding 
 turban-like around his head. Then, closing the door 
 
 16
 
 242 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 of the lumber-room after me, I began a swift descent 
 of the stairs. I had three flights to run down, and 
 when I had reached the bottom I went at once to the 
 drawing-room, where I had last seen my mother. 
 She was not there now, and while hesitating where 
 to look for her next, I thought I caught a sound of 
 voices in the library. I suppose I turned the handle 
 of the door noiselessly. In any case the occupants of 
 the room did not move, as I glanced in. They were 
 seated in the farther part, where the gathering dusk 
 shrouded objects in a soft mantle both of stillness and 
 indistinctness. 
 
 It seemed as if everything must become subdued 
 under the sort of quieting spell which the hour and 
 atmosphere induced. The dreamy weariness of the 
 earth works at moments restfully upon the heart, and 
 the two forms which I gazed upon had yielded to the 
 prevailing influence. They were not speaking. If I 
 had just heard voices, they had ceased now, and look 
 and attitude told of the thought which does not easily 
 find a vent in words. 
 
 My pulses had given a throb at the first glance. 
 My mother was here, but her companion was a 
 stranger, a gentleman whom I had never seen before. 
 Though his face was partially averted, I could discover 
 that it was very pale, and that his dark hair was thickly 
 streaked with grey. In that instant of observation I 
 seemed to know and understand all, and without a 
 syllable I reclosed the door and stole swiftly away. It
 
 MERYLLVS MYSTERY. 243 
 
 was my cousin Frederick who had come at last. I felt no 
 doubt of this, and I waited anxiously for some summons 
 from my mother. But an hour passed by, and I 
 heard nothing, and then, growing a little impatient, I 
 went again towards the library. I knocked timidly, 
 but there was no answer, and at that moment I 
 saw my mother in the hall. She had just stepped 
 out of the conservatory, and had on her bonnet and 
 shawl. 
 
 " Where are you going ?" I exclaimed eagerly. 
 
 " Nowhere, Ellie," she returned. " My walk is over 
 for to-day. I have been as far as the end of the avenue, 
 but I am coming in now." 
 
 "And the gentleman ?" I murmured. "Where is he? 
 You had some one with you in the library." 
 
 I suppose my face told what I had guessed, for my 
 mother stopped me gently. 
 
 " Yes, Ellie, he has come," she said. " But do not 
 speak of it. The younger ones would talk and question, 
 so that it would be more than embarrassing. I am 
 sure I can trust you, and that you will be careful and 
 considerate." 
 
 I gave my assurances quickly, but pursued almost 
 in the same breath : 
 
 " But, mother, has he gone now ? Will he not stay 
 here with us ?" 
 
 " He cannot do that," was the reply. " He has re- 
 turned to London by the evening train. His visit was 
 quite unexpected by me. He walked over from the 
 
 1 6 2
 
 244 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 station, and I have just accompanied him on his way 
 back as far as the lodge." 
 
 " And did no one see him but you, mother ?" 
 
 " No one on this occasion. Your father has not 
 come in yet from his ride, and of course I would not 
 trouble your cousin with new faces now. He is 
 anxious, indeed, but for one thing to have an early 
 meeting with his father. At all risks, I must try for 
 that ; he cannot rest without it. There is one matter 
 I am half sorry for, Ellie, and that your father is 
 really distressed about." 
 
 " What is that ?" I interposed. 
 
 " That you have heard the whole story. He did not 
 think it right I should tell you, lest it might cause any 
 shadow of embarrassment when your cousin arrived. 
 But I was over-persuaded by your own longings, and 
 by a sort of vague hope that you might do something 
 with your uncle George." 
 
 " And perhaps I may," I exclaimed. " I cannot see 
 what harm has been done. If a cousin returned sud- 
 denly from abroad, of whom I had never heard, I 
 should naturally have guessed there was some mystery. 
 Knowing what I do, I shall be careful to restrain curi- 
 osity and inquiries. I am anxious to see my cousin ; 
 but why need there be anything to disconcert us in a 
 meeting? He will never discover from my manner that 
 I know anything, except that he is a new-found relative. 
 My father should have no fears on that account." 
 
 As usual, I was quite confident, and my manner re-
 
 MERYLLE S MYSTERY. 245 
 
 assured my mother in so far that she touched no further 
 on the subject. She began some questions on another 
 matter, and interested herself respecting the prepara- 
 tions which were making for my birthday. Fred and 
 Merylle appeared in a sort of mad race presently. The 
 goal fixed upon was the schoolroom door, and as 
 Merylle was first in entering the hall, Fred made such 
 a desperate dash to overtake her, that he upset nearly 
 everything in his progress. They both seemed to come 
 into collision together at the winning-post. At least 
 the clamour and outcries that arose pointed to the diffi- 
 culties attendant on a " dead heat." Sober conversa- 
 tion was out of the question in their vicinity, and mine 
 with my mother was speedily interrupted.
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 MY BIRTHDAY. 
 
 " Nor less I deem that there are powers 
 
 Which of themselves our minds impress ; 
 That we can feed this mind of ours 
 In a wise passiveness." 
 
 WORDSWORTH. 
 
 THE house was brilliantly lighted up, and the hall 
 and rooms decorated with flowers. I was arrayed in 
 a pure white dress of transparent texture, looped up 
 with sprays of jessamine ; and as I ran down the 
 staircase to inspect the last arrangements below, I 
 felt a sort of airy elation. The party was mine in a 
 measure, and something of that queenlike sensation 
 was beginning to steal over me which Fred would 
 have overthrown with a jest. It was to be met in 
 another way now. Dick, George, and Lucy had all 
 gathered in the hall, and when they saw me coming 
 down the flight, they sprang forwards with an impul- 
 sive greeting. 
 
 " Isn't she grand !" cried Dick, and a hand was 
 stretched towards me appreciatingly.
 
 MY BIRTH DA Y. 247 
 
 It is an inconvenient fact that the inspection of the 
 eye never seems to satisfy in a case of admiration. 
 Another sense must be brought into play, and a touch 
 or grasp be given before the desired estimate is 
 obtained. Even the most delicate flowers are not 
 spared this scrutiny ; nor is it children alone who are 
 led in such fashion to help out their powers of obser- 
 vation. At the same time their seizure is certainly 
 less considerate than that of their elders, and I shrank 
 from it in the present instance with a shriek. 
 
 " Don't touch me, Dick !" I implored. " Don't, like 
 a good boy ! I am all puffs only to be looked at." 
 
 " All in a puff, at any rate," cried the terrible voice 
 of Fred, and I saw him emerging from the drawing- 
 room. He eyed me from head to foot with his bright 
 twinkling orbs, and I trembled for what might be 
 coming. " Where's your crown, Nell ?" he said ; " you 
 want some top to all that grandeur." 
 
 Impressed with the feeling that my hair was too 
 thick and wavy, and rather overweighted my slight 
 figure, I had added no adornment here. 
 
 Dick pressed forward again. 
 
 " Yes, yes, Ellie, you should have something on 
 your head," he began. " You have such heaps of 
 things on your dress ;" and, by way of emphasis, he 
 made a grasp at a floating tendril of my flowers. 
 
 I started back so suddenly that I tripped on the 
 last step of the stairs, and was all but gone. I think 
 I would have preferred the fall to what saved me
 
 248 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 from it. It was the quick advance of the whole body 
 of children, and half-a-dozen arms stretched out to 
 my assistance. 
 
 "Keep off! keep away!" I cried distractedly; but 
 they were full of active concern, and each vied with 
 the other in coming promptly to the rescue. Even 
 George had a hand out, and as the other clutched 
 something like a plum-bun, my dread of him was ex- 
 cusable. 
 
 " Don't attempt it, George !" I exclaimed. " Don't 
 dare to put your fingers on me," and I am afraid he 
 got a slight push at the instant. At all events his 
 features fell into position for a wail, but I am quite 
 sure it was only his sensitiveness could have suffered. 
 Fred recovered him with a little clap on the back. 
 
 " I say, you mustn't touch Nell !" he cried. " You 
 mustn't even look at her, George. A glance might 
 ruffle, and that would upset her temper, if not her 
 toilet. Clear back, every one of you. Make a good 
 wide circle, and let us see if she has room enough then." 
 
 The response to this mandate left me alone in the 
 middle of the ring; with no means of escape, and 
 under the immediate fire of criticism. The order re- 
 specting an ocular survey had not been attended to, 
 as indeed Fred had scarcely intended it should be, 
 and I heard mocking comments on all sides. They 
 were so crushing in some instances that it might have 
 been better to let my garb suffer in this way than my 
 individual self.
 
 MY BIRTHDA Y. 249 
 
 " Dress may have glitter, but the smile within 
 Hath beauty that will wear and win." 
 
 " She looks a little red," said Fred, " but she may 
 tone down from nervousness. I think I see a quiver 
 already. I am sure I hear a carriage on the avenue." 
 
 " It's not time yet," broke in Merylle, who had 
 joined the party. " Mamma is not down, and Ellie 
 has to get her bouquet out of water still. She left it 
 in the greenhouse. You had better let her go, Fred." 
 
 " Let her go ? Am I holding her ? I am holding 
 you all back from her. That's what I have done. 
 She ought to be curtseying her thanks to me for it : 
 a good lancer-like dip. Come, Nell, let us see that 
 before you're off." 
 
 I was getting really angry, but it would have been 
 fatal to show the feeling. Fred was of use in one 
 way. He compelled me to good-humour at times as 
 a sort of self-preservative. Fortunately my mother's 
 voice was heard now. She was at the head of the 
 stairs preparing to descend, and I was released to 
 make way for her. 
 
 It had been arranged that a little music and a 
 short dance for the young people were to precede the 
 theatrical part of the evening's entertainment, and I 
 went into the drawing-room to look out for some 
 quadrille music, etc., and have it ready on the piano. 
 
 While here, some one entered ; and, turning round, 
 I saw Mr. Locke. We had not met for a long time, 
 though I had been punctual in the discharge of my
 
 250 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 school duties, but I had not chanced to encounter 
 him on these expeditions again. Dick was close be- 
 hind him, and was so effusive in his greetings, that I 
 felt that the clerical costume carried an enviable dis- 
 tinction about it. It was one really to be trusted to, 
 and the best fitted for a mortal in his perilous passage 
 through the world. 
 
 Dick was clinging on to his coat-tails, and making 
 himself otherwise cheerfully demonstrative. I tried 
 to check him, but Mr. Locke encouraged him with 
 a pat. 
 
 " Well, my boy, and what is to come off to-night ?" 
 he asked. " You are in great spirits, evidently." 
 
 " Ellie is to be a queen," exclaimed the little tor- 
 ment. " Fred has it all planned in the play." 
 
 "And you are telling it all beforehand," I interrupted. 
 " The performance won't be much, if there's not even 
 the charm of novelty left to it." 
 
 " But this is only at the last," persisted Dick ; "just 
 a drop-scene." 
 
 " I wish it were dropped first as well as last," I ex- 
 claimed. " That is your description of it. Tell your 
 own part, if you wish." 
 
 He was to be an imp somewhere in the course of 
 action, and I felt that he would probably distinguish 
 himself. 
 
 " I must take care and avoid you, whatever I'm 
 about," was his retort, with a grimace. " She thinks 
 I've crushed her, Mr. Locke, but there's not a hair
 
 MY BIRTHDAY. 251 
 
 turned that I can see," and he danced round my 
 dress with a provoking merriment. 
 
 I began to think that the beauties of a new costume 
 were questionable, and that in my case, at all events, 
 there was less pride associated with the latter than 
 mortification. Mr. Locke, however, had something 
 pleasant to say which dissipated vexation. 
 
 " What lovely wreaths," he murmured, eyeing my 
 adornments, but not venturing on the hazardous 
 touch ; " and natural flowers, too. They are so skil- 
 fully arranged I half thought they were artificial." 
 
 " Is that a compliment to art at the expense of 
 nature ?" I laughed. 
 
 " It means only that they are perfect in their 
 position and preservation," he said. "Young ladies 
 tell me that the fairest things are always the frailest, 
 and that they have to call in adventitious aid to 
 'make them last,' as they term it." 
 
 " Right enough, sir," broke in the dreadful voice of 
 Fred. He had entered unperceived, and stolen close 
 behind me. " Now, if Nell had only had sense, she'd 
 have done the same, and we needn't all stand in awe of 
 her. As it is " and he made a retreating movement 
 expressive of the most absurd apprehension " as it 
 is, it's not safe to come within twenty yards of her 
 ladyship. I give you all fair warning." 
 
 " I think I am a good deal nearer," said Mr. 
 Locke with a smile, "and don't feel myself at all 
 endangered."
 
 252 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 " But how about her, or her dress rather ?" ex- 
 claimed Fred. " That's the point, sir. But there 
 she's not such a vain old girl after all," he pursued. 
 " She forgot her flowers, her crowning piece of adorn- 
 ment. See what it is to have a brother at hand a 
 thoughtful one like me. I've brought them to you, 
 Nell," and again he came dancing up to me, one hand, 
 which had been behind his back until now, stretched 
 out with the offering. 
 
 My bouquet had not been forgotten. I had left it 
 in a place of freshness for the present, and to see it in 
 his crushing clasp was no pleasant surprise. However 
 I had to accept it with apparent gratitude. To make 
 a fuss again was out of the question. I had suffered 
 enough for my first puff of importance. 
 
 Other arrivals were announced now, and I was soon 
 too busy to pay attention to teasing ; and .Fred, 
 robbed of his vocation, had to make himself ration- 
 ally agreeable. 
 
 Tom and Julia Horton were to take part in the 
 charades ; and they, with some other young friends, 
 came early for a little prior consultation. Fred had 
 chosen an effective word to start with, which faintly 
 shadowed forth his ideas of what was desirable. 
 MENACE was to be represented as strongly as we 
 could, but we were to wind up with MASSACRE, where 
 all his powers might be expected to come into play. 
 I had demurred at first to his choice, but I found it 
 wiser to yield to it, if he was to have any voice in the
 
 MY BIRTHDAY. 253 
 
 matter at all. His mind ran in such a terrible groove 
 that these words were but mild expressions of it, and 
 were preferable to " cutlass," " assassinate," etc., which 
 were proffered next. 
 
 I was not to appear in character till the close of the 
 last charade, as I could scarcely absent myself too 
 long from the general circle. This obliged me to 
 allow Fred very much his own way, while it reconciled 
 me in a measure to the excitable nature of his ar- 
 rangements. At present, my part was to glide grace- 
 fully about, look my best, and do my best for the 
 entertainment of the company. 
 
 The music and dancing portion of the programme 
 was passed successfully through. Fred, in view of 
 what was coming, restrained himself pretty fairly 
 from bringing his partners to complete grief. There 
 were only two or three slips and downfalls where I 
 had to spring in to the rescue, and nothing more than a 
 hearty laugh was evoked. 
 
 The children were all either in a flutter of expecta- 
 tion now respecting the scenic effects that were to 
 follow, or engaged actively in preparations therefor. 
 Thus, for a moment, there was a pause for me, and in 
 the interim of quiet Mr. Locke came up to me. I be- 
 lieve I looked a little anxious and half tired already. 
 
 " I am afraid, Miss Wynham, it is more business 
 than pleasure for you to-night," he said. " This seems 
 scarcely considerate. The festival being in your honour, 
 you should have less to do."
 
 254 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 " But would that add to the pleasure, Mr. Locke ?" 
 I exclaimed. " I thought your opinion would be 
 favourable to the work." 
 
 " Not over-work," he rejoined, smiling. " I can guess 
 what the presence of a number of young people must 
 entail." 
 
 " Plenty of trouble," I interposed, " but liveliness 
 too ; and that gives us a fair proportion of good with 
 the evil, does it not ?" 
 
 " I believe you are fond of children after all," was his 
 comment. " I know you have been very kind about 
 the school-visiting. I hear from Miss Manning that 
 you are the most regular now in attendance of all our 
 ladies, and the little ones look forward to your ap- 
 pearance amongst them with real pleasure." 
 
 " Oh, but they are wonderfully amiable and amen- 
 able, Mr. Locke. Too good, as I told you." 
 
 " That account says enough in itself," he returned. 
 " It is not every one would give it of a village 
 school." 
 
 " But this is an exceptional one," and I gave a little 
 smile. " You know you think that yourself, and I am 
 quite sure Miss Manning does, at all events." 
 
 " Yes, she is proud of her flock," he admitted. " But 
 I can take no credit to myself for their management, 
 so -you may absolve me from the conceit." 
 
 At this moment we heard a sudden noise in the back 
 drawing-room. It was here the charades were to be 
 enacted, and the folding-doors were closed between it
 
 MY BIRTHDAY. 255 
 
 and the apartment in which we were at present await- 
 ing the representation. 
 
 " Now Fred has done something !" I ejaculated. 
 " The stage is down, or some of the actors, at any rate. 
 I had better go in and see." 
 
 " I think not," said Mr. Locke. " To see might be 
 only provoking, and where your brother is, I should 
 say, help would be uncalled for. He has a way of his 
 own of settling everything, which is prompt and 
 positive." 
 
 " I perceive you know him well," I laughed. " But it 
 won't do to let him treat his guests too summarily," and 
 I moved towards the folding-doors. As I approached, 
 they were partially opened, and one of Fred's eyes 
 shone in the aperture. Seeing me, he beckoned fran- 
 tically, and I flew to him at once. There was a groan 
 as I came behind the scenes, and I found that he had 
 pulled down a curtain and pole on the top of Julia 
 Horton. All these matters had been fixed beforehand, 
 but he would try effects with a reckless impetuosity, 
 and while the young lady was in position for the opening 
 scene, with some fanciful head-gear adjusted, there was 
 a sudden crash, followed by outcries. Julia was buried 
 in ruins, and Fred, in attempting to extricate her, made 
 matters worse by his too strenuous efforts. Fortunately, 
 she was not much hurt, and by dealing with her more 
 delicately, she was brought gradually to light. The 
 worst of it was, she declared she would not act now, 
 and Fred insisted I should take her place. This was
 
 256 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 interfering with all our prior arrangements, but what 
 was to be done? The three scenes of the first word were 
 to form a regular little play, and it would be spoiled 
 completely if there were not a young lady on the 
 boards. Merylle had her own role to carry out as a 
 pert handmaid, and I was the only substitute that 
 could be found. I was vexed at the whole catastrophe, 
 and scarcely knew how I was to fall into position at 
 such short notice. However, the force of necessity 
 carried me through, and the performance was wound 
 up with applause. 
 
 I had long looked forward to this night, but I may 
 candidly state that I was immensely relieved when it 
 was safely over. Toil seems inseparable from anything 
 of triumph, and if we seek enjoyment only in our own 
 sensations, and not in a more widely diffused pleasure 
 around us, we are pretty sure to miss it. Fred, how- 
 ever, proclaimed the evening a great success. He had 
 had scope for his works and wildness, and to his heed- 
 less head that was enough. That he had smashed two 
 chairs and a vase, hurt Julia Horton's feelings, if not 
 herself, and torn the drawing-room curtains to pieces 
 in the final massacre, were mere matters of pleasurable 
 excitement to look back upon. Dick, too, had come 
 in for his share of mischief and mirth ; and as George 
 had both forestalled the supper, and followed it up by 
 a constant state of feasting, the younger ones might be 
 supposed to be satisfied. Lucy had been a little fairy 
 in one scene, and had looked lovely enough to be kissed
 
 MY BIRTHDAY. 
 
 all round afterwards ; and if Merylle figured less con- 
 spicuously in the general elation, no doubt partial 
 obscurity was good for her. 
 
 For myself I felt older in some way after the night 
 was over, and I suppose the sensation was literally 
 correct. Yet that did not make it exactly the more 
 enjoyable. Youth has a charm which we often fail to 
 know or appreciate till it has fled for ever something 
 faint and delicate as a perfume that steals back upon 
 us in after-time with the memory which is more 
 haunting than the reality. If sorrow is sharp then, 
 hope, at least, is sunny, and there is nothing in the 
 whole range of earthly treasures that can rival this 
 jewel of the heart. Our earliest days, when touched 
 by the light of home-love and happiness, lie in a 
 sort of heaven-lit atmosphere which floats away from 
 the awakened gaze. We turn to them only in 
 dreams ; they live again for us only in the misty 
 region which is reverie, and not life. 
 
 " How beautiful is youth ! How fair its face, 
 With its illusions, aspirations, grace, 
 Book of beginnings, story without an end, 
 Each maid a heroine, and each man a friend." 
 
 It might have been something of presentiment now 
 which induced the gravity of reflection. I had wished 
 to be admitted into the full confidence and consulta- 
 tions of my elders. I had not thought that cares come 
 with such. I had doubted or forgotten that to taste of 
 the tree of knowledge is to look outwards from Eden. 
 
 17
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 THE GHOST OF A DINNER. 
 
 " Thus, when the lamp that lighted 
 
 The traveller at first goes out, 
 He feels awhile benighted 
 
 And looks round in fear and doubt. 
 But soon the prospect clearing 
 
 By cloudless starlight on he treads 
 And thinks no lamp so cheering 
 As that light which Heaven sheds." 
 
 MOORE. 
 " ELLIE, Ellie !" 
 
 It was my mother's voice calling me from her room, 
 and I ran up to her hastily. She was standing near 
 the window, with an open letter in her hand. The 
 sheet was written on both sides, and with a glance 
 towards it I recognised the peculiar characters, and 
 knew the penmanship to be that of Uncle George. 
 He always used a jet-black ink and sturdy pen, and 
 the letters seemed to be literally dug into the page. 
 I felt instinctively that something was wrong, and yet 
 it could scarcely be a question of illness, considering 
 the length and legibility of the letter.
 
 THE GHOST OF A DINNER. 259 
 
 " You have heard from Uncle George ?" I exclaimed 
 at once. " What does he say, mother ? He has not 
 had another attack has he ?" 
 
 " No, no," she murmured, " the very contrary. He 
 feels particularly well, he says. This makes him rest- 
 less, I think that is, more anxious to see people 
 and he wishes, or wants, rather " 
 
 She broke off here, and I noticed something strange, 
 almost troubled, in her manner. 
 
 " He wants you to go to him ?" I interposed. 
 
 " Not exactly, Ellie," was her reply. " But you arc 
 coming to the point. It is you he asks for." 
 
 " For me !" I ejaculated. " But to. see him only, I 
 suppose not to stay there ?" 
 
 " I am afraid you won't like it that you can't do 
 it," she said. 
 
 " I can go to him some morning, if you wish," I re- 
 turned. " I have done that before. But surely neither 
 he nor you would expect more ?" 
 
 " I scarcely do so, Ellie ; but he does not consider 
 the loneliness of the Manor-House, or if he does think 
 of it, I suppose it is only to heighten his self-com- 
 passion. No one can learn unselfishness that leads 
 the life of a recluse. To live for others is to live with 
 them and amongst them." 
 
 I was too panic-stricken to have anything but the 
 one thought. The mournful old mansion rose before 
 me funereal-like in its gloom, and I seemed already 
 shut into its imprisonment. The black figure of 
 
 172
 
 26o MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 Willis had a dread significance, and the startling calls 
 of my uncle were all but ringing in my ears. 
 
 "Oh, mother, I can't do this," I murmured. "You 
 would not ask It if you knew what I should suffer." 
 
 " But I am not asking it, Ellie. I am just telling 
 you what your uncle has written about, and desired. 
 To me it seemed a token for good that he should care 
 to have the young about him again. At the same 
 time, I could not urge the visit upon you. I feel that 
 it would be useless, if your own inclinations were 
 strongly against it. As I have always said and 
 thought, it is the confidence of affection he is seeking 
 for. Let him but gain this, and the hardness would 
 be gone. He would repel you no more, as at present. 
 The first impulse that drew you to him would evoke 
 unexpected warmth and kindliness." 
 
 " But he was always stern, was he not, mother ?" 
 
 " In manner no doubt he was," she returned ; " yet 
 not entirely so at all times, and to every one. To his 
 boy he showed the fulness of affection while the love 
 and trust of youth were still fresh in the child. Later, 
 the unfortunate restrictions about money awoke dif- 
 ferences and estrangements. His son was naturally 
 of a most generous, even lavish, disposition, and this 
 accorded but ill with his father's habits." 
 
 I was silent for a moment. I was wishing much I 
 could yield a willing compliance. But that was out 
 of the question. Would it be well then to refuse reso- 
 lutely, or to compel myself to the effort ? Already a
 
 THE GHOST OF A DINNER. 261 
 
 premonitory regret arose that the mystery of Uncle 
 George had been so wholly penetrated, that, knowing 
 what I did, my inclinations were no longer free. Any 
 withdrawal on my part must carry with it a silent re- 
 proach. My mother might say nothing, but my own 
 heart could not wholly acquit me of culpable shrink- 
 ing from what might be the path of right and duty. 
 
 My mother, noticing my indecision, said kindly : 
 
 " I will leave you to think the matter over, Ellie. I 
 need not answer your uncle George until the after- 
 noon. Should you agree to the plan, I would take 
 you over to-morrow myself, and if you remain a night 
 or two, it would be enough as a trial of what you 
 could do, and of what he would wish." 
 
 As she said this, she had opened the door of her 
 dressing-room, and was going towards the staircase. 
 It was just the busy hour of the day with her, and she 
 could not well delay longer for consultation. 
 
 I followed her, however. I could not rest with this 
 dreadful weight upon my mind. To dwell on it alone 
 seemed to be anticipating the evil. I caught her in a 
 sort of imploring clasp. 
 
 " Oh, mother, I don't think I could do it," I mur- 
 mured. 
 
 A sudden clap from behind emphasised the state- 
 ment. Fred was there, and I felt his seizure on my 
 shoulders. He had heard something already, or 
 guessed it, at all events, for he sprang at once into the 
 subject.
 
 252 M Y MO THER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 " Not she !" he exclaimed. " She'd never do it. 
 Poor old Nell ! she's thin enough as it is. Send her 
 into that house, and she'll come out of it a skeleton." 
 
 " What do you know about it, Fred ?" interposed 
 my mother almost sternly. 
 
 She was vexed at his inopportune appearance, and 
 the interference which as quickly followed. 
 
 "I know that Uncle George has written," he 
 pursued. " I saw his crabbed handwriting on a big 
 envelope on the breakfast-table. If it's Nell he wants, 
 I don't think she's equal to it. It takes a good bit of 
 pluck to face that grim old place, I can tell you." 
 
 His words were the first things to inspire a sudden 
 resolve. None like to have their courage doubted, 
 and, before Fred at least, the imputation of weakness 
 was not to be tamely accepted. 
 
 " I don't know what you mean," I exclaimed. " I 
 should think I've been at the Manor-House before, 
 and stayed a night there too. What you could do is 
 another thing, but I have been tried already." 
 
 " Isn't she cock-a-hoop !" said Fred. " Quite game, 
 I declare. We'll have her heading a regiment soon." 
 
 My mother had too much to do to listen to his 
 nonsense, and we were presently left to ourselves. 
 
 Fred's teasing had a wonderfully reviving effect, 
 and when anxiety yielded to annoyance, a complete 
 reaction had set in. The dreamy terrors of the 
 imagination were gone ; I was too full of heat and 
 hastiness to give place to a thrill of awe. It was in
 
 THE GHOST OF A DINNER. 263 
 
 this manner that my courage and confidence were got 
 up, and that I began to contemplate the possibility 
 of a visit to the Manor- House. 
 
 When I thought the matter over, it was flattering 
 in one way that Uncle George wished for me. He 
 was so exclusive in his views and fancies, that the 
 close admission to his presence could not but mark an 
 especial favour towards myself. I am afraid I did 
 not fully appreciate the feeling, and should have been 
 as pleased that it had not been awakened. At the 
 same time, being there, and inclining him to this un- 
 wonted hospitality, it might not be well to check it. 
 I saw that it gratified my mother, while it perplexed 
 her, and my sensations took gradually something of 
 the same tone. 
 
 The result of my ruminations was the acceptance 
 of the invitation, and on the following afternoon my 
 mother and I set out in the carriage together. 
 
 When we reached our destination, we found uncle 
 in the library in the midst of his fusty books, as usual, 
 and he welcomed us with a grim smile. I felt that he 
 was pleased at my appearance. Nevertheless, a keen, 
 scanning glance, which seemed to shake my very heart 
 within me, was not exactly the greeting I would have 
 desired. However, I bore up beautifully till the part- 
 ing with my mother came. Then a half tremor seized 
 me, and a sort of desolate sensation, as if I were being 
 deserted and left alone in the world. Despite the 
 watchful eyes of my uncle, I knew that my face told
 
 264 MY MO THER'S DIA MONDS. 
 
 its tale, and that he must read there the nervous 
 shrinking I would fain have concealed. 
 
 When my mother had left, he motioned to me to 
 take a chair near him. 
 
 " You look a little pale, Ellen," he said. " Is there 
 anything the matter ?" 
 
 What was I to say ? My answer was to try and 
 draw my seat into the shade, for I felt tears rising in 
 my eyes. I wanted Fred's presence to brace me up. 
 A taunt from him would have been worth more than 
 kindness. 
 
 " Were you never away from your mother before ?" 
 pursued Uncle George scrutinisingly. " At all events, 
 she has been away from you, and that is much the 
 same thing, isn't it ?" 
 
 His questions were all so terrible, so sharpened to a 
 point-blank aim, it was impossible to answer them. 
 Truthfulness shrank from the task, and hypocrisy 
 would have been unavailing. 
 
 " I am very glad to come to you, uncle," I began, 
 and in that there was a grain of sincerity, for the de- 
 cision had been my own, and I felt that I was doing 
 right in forming it. " I only wish I could be of some 
 use to you. Would you care for me to read to you, or 
 is there anything else I can do ?" 
 
 " Not now, not now !" he exclaimed. " I want you 
 to talk, to amuse me. Have you got no news? I suppose 
 you think because I live here alone I am to be forgotten 
 entirely to hear nothing, to know nothing ?"
 
 THE GHOST OF A DINNER. 265 
 
 " There is really little to tell, sir," I returned. " We 
 are all very quiet, and, as a rule, pretty busy. We had 
 a party last Thursday for my birthday, but that was 
 quite an event." 
 
 " If it was an event, it ought to be worthy of notice, 
 but I suppose I am not worthy of being informed of 
 it that is the point." 
 
 " Indeed, uncle, you mistake me !" I cried. " Now 
 that it is over, I have hardly thought about it, and it 
 was not a very gay affair. We had principally young 
 people." 
 
 " How old were you then, Ellen ?" he interposed 
 suddenly. 
 
 " Eighteen," I said. 
 
 " I thought so," he murmured. " I had not forgotten 
 the night, nor the age either, it seems. No dubt you 
 imagined I had. Of course you remarked that I gave 
 you nothing." 
 
 " Nothing could scarcely be remarked, uncle," I 
 laughed. " I had not a great many presents, and, as 
 I never expect much, they were pleasant surprises." 
 
 " What did your aunt Rachel give ?" he asked. 
 
 " A ' Little Wanzer,' uncle." 
 
 " A little what ?" 
 
 " A sewing-machine. But it is not new, and I can't 
 manage it. There Is something wrong, I'm afraid." 
 
 " She had smashed it first, in fact ?" and he chuckled. 
 
 I knew I could not please him better than by allow- 
 ing this to be thought, and as it was perfectly true,
 
 266 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 there was no use in disguising matters. The " Little 
 Wanzer " came to me in an extremely shaky condi- 
 tion, and some attempts of Fred's to set it on its legs 
 again, finished off the wreck of its internal economy. 
 
 " You thanked her, I hope ?" he inquired, with the 
 gleam still in his eyes. 
 
 " Well, yes, I thanked her," I admitted. 
 
 " And you really do feel grateful ?" 
 
 " I suppose she meant it well, uncle. And it might 
 have been of some use if Fred had not taken it to 
 pieces at once." 
 
 The name had come out inadvertently, and instantly 
 I saw a shadow on uncle's face. How could he think 
 he had forgotten ? how could any one imagine that the 
 past had been buried, when this name alone had such 
 strange and swift power over him ? 
 
 He turned away from me now, bent over a cabinet 
 at his side, and took something from an inner drawer. 
 The next instant it was in my hands, and he repeated 
 brusquely, almost roughly : 
 
 " No thanks, no thanks. I hate them. I want none 
 of them. That may go to pieces like your aunt Rachel's 
 grand offering, and you will be as glad then they were 
 spared you." 
 
 I began timidly to unfold a paper which was 
 wrapped around what seemed a box or case, but even 
 here my instinctive actions were arrested. 
 
 " Never mind it now," he said. " It's not a dose 'to 
 be taken at once' It will keep, if you can keep it, I 
 can tell you."
 
 THE GHOST OF A DINNER. 
 
 Thereupon I had to crush the packet surreptitiously 
 into my pocket like some ill-gotten goods which must 
 not be mentioned or displayed. I was curious re- 
 specting the contents, for a present from Uncle George 
 was an unexampled thing, calculated to give rather a 
 shock than a pleasurable thrill. Sitting here in the 
 half-twilight with him, the strangest feeling came over 
 me, as if he were a sort of wizard, and I were being 
 brought under the spell of a dubious enchantment. 
 The gloom of the room, the glitter of his small 
 piercing eyes, the mysterious tomes, yellow with dust 
 and age, which were ranged sombrously around us, all 
 heightened the sensation, and drew me from the clear- 
 ness of reality into a kind of visionary scene. It 
 scarcely seemed new to me. I had surely dreamt of 
 it, if not lived in it, before. It touched on that bor- 
 der-land where consciousness grows dim, and forms 
 fade even into shadows. 
 
 His voice aroused me, also a sound in the hall 
 without. 
 
 " There's Willis with the dinner," he exclaimed. 
 " You're not hungry, I hope ? for I am." 
 
 This preamble was not unnecessary to the appear- 
 ance of an exceedingly small woodcock. It was served 
 correctly, with due sauces and adjuncts, but it was set 
 out alone on a silver dish, and in one opposite there 
 were four Brussels-sprouts, not much bigger than a 
 marble each. Two slices of bread completed the re- 
 past, which was carried in complete on a tray, with a
 
 268 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 damask cloth underneath, so that Willis had only to 
 place it ready on a little table at uncle's side. For- 
 tunately I had fared heartily at home at luncheon- 
 hour, or the meagre preparations would have been 
 appalling. A heart like George's must have suc- 
 cumbed at once. Uncle helped me to something 
 which I think must have been a bit of the outer skin 
 of the leg, with three grains of shot added as a make- 
 weight. 
 
 " You must help out your dinner with vegetables 
 for to-day, Ellen," he said. " I was not sure you 
 would come, so there was no use in laying in stores. 
 You like greens, I hope? As to potatoes, I never 
 have them. They're not good for gouty people." 
 
 Was I included in that category ? I thought to 
 myself. It would appear so from the aspect of things, 
 and uncle's decision respecting the proper diet to be 
 adopted under the circumstances. No exception evi- 
 dently was to be made in my case. 
 
 I tried to fiddle with my knife and fork, having 
 little else to manipulate, but long before uncle had 
 picked the last shreds of his woodcock I was sitting 
 blankly before a bare plate, thinking vaguely whether 
 game, as it had begun the repast, was to end it too, 
 and how long it would be possible to exist on the 
 mere view of a snipe or woodcock. The dusk, to 
 which we were still left, possibly veiled my position 
 as well as my expression from uncle. At all events 
 he plainly enjoyed his own lion's share of the banquet
 
 THE GHOST OF A DINNER. 269 
 
 without any compunctious twinges, and when he had 
 come to a satisfactory conclusion, he poured himself 
 out a brimming glass of Burgundy. 
 
 " Will you try some, Ellen ?" he asked, and brought 
 the tall bottle a little nearer to me. I was glad to be 
 able to refuse. I really did not care for wine, and his 
 face beamed so when he saw me turning to the carafe 
 of water, that it struck me an opposite course might 
 have been hazardous. 
 
 " I hope you don't care for such poisonous things as 
 puddings or pies ?" he demanded next. " If you do, 
 you won't get them here. I've not lived so many 
 years in the world without learning what's safe and 
 wholesome. You all have the toothache nowadays 
 before you've well cut your teeth, and as to com- 
 plexion, there's as much green to be seen in it often 
 as in the face of nature." 
 
 I think the envious shade had stolen into his own 
 remarks, and that if he could have enjoyed a sweet- 
 meat like younger palates he would not have been so 
 severe on its effects. I know in our family he could 
 hardly have seen much of the objectionable hue. With 
 the exception, perhaps, of George, we were all rather 
 ruddy than muddy, and Lucy, at least, had a most 
 peach-like bloom. 
 
 But whatever his views were based on, I need not 
 expect to alter them. Taking, as they did, the rigid 
 turn of economy, they were naturally inflexible, and 
 a morsel of Stilton cheese wound up the repast.
 
 2/0 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 Meanwhile, we sat in gloom. The gathering dark- 
 ness grew weighty without, and within we had only 
 the flicker of a very feeble wood fire to enliven or en- 
 lighten us. Uncle's figure in the great easy-chair 
 became shadowy, indistinct. It seemed fading gradu- 
 ally from me, and a silence which had succeeded on 
 his last remarks was for minutes unbroken. All at 
 once his voice startled me again. 
 
 " Would you like candles ?" he exclaimed. " Do 
 you want to read anything ? Of course, if it's only 
 talking or thinking we're at, either can be done as 
 well or better in the dark." 
 
 The dismal prospect was too much for me. I must 
 rush at literature as the one mode of escape. 
 
 " I would wish very much to look over some of 
 your books, uncle, if you v/ill let me," I said timidly. 
 
 " Which of them ?" was the quick answer. " I can't 
 let them all be knocked about." 
 
 The idea of a general overhauling of his library 
 was rather preposterous. The piles of volumes which 
 were on the floor alone would have taken me days to 
 glance at. Heavy in binding, heavier in matter, and 
 thick with dust, a tolerably powerful leverage must be 
 applied to their displacement. 
 
 " I think you have an illustrated ' Shakespere,' 
 uncle," I ventured. " Might I see that ?" 
 
 " Boydell ?" he inquired. " Well, yes ; when the 
 lights come you can go through it carefully, but be 
 cautious how you turn the pages. It has had too
 
 THE GHOST OF A DINNER. 271 
 
 much thumbing in its day, and the leaves show the 
 traces of it in occasional weakness. There are soils 
 too. They say ' Many hands make light work,' but it 
 is my belief ' Many hands make dark work.' " 
 
 He smiled grimly at the jest, and I heard his stick 
 give a little tap of applause. Or could it have been a 
 summons for Willis ? In any case, the door opened 
 at the moment, and that individual appeared bearing 
 in his hand a silver candelabra containing three 
 lighted wax candles. My heart gave a bound at the 
 sight, but I don't think uncle's did. He viewed the 
 trebled blaze long and wistfully. The extravagance was 
 Willis's, or it could not have been borne for a second. 
 But, suddenly, the contemplation was too much for 
 him. Human nature could sustain it no' longer. He 
 stooped towards the stand, which had been placed 
 close at his side, and blew out one of the lights. 
 
 " There is such a flare," he said, " it is quite intoler- 
 able. I think Willis wants to blind us both." 
 
 I said nothing, for I was sorry to see the illumina- 
 tion diminished. It lent an unexpected cheerfulness 
 to the aspect of things, and even the musty book- 
 shelves stood out more invitingly in the gleam. How- 
 ever we had still two candles, and they were better 
 than one or none. Unluckily that was only my 
 opinion. Uncle was very far from sharing it. I 
 could scarcely repress a little cry when he made 
 another dive and extinguished another of the lights. 
 
 " Now, what's wrong ?" he demanded. " Is there
 
 272 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 anything the matter ? You give a start as if there 
 were. You are doing nothing that I can see. What 
 do you want all that blaze in your eyes for ?" 
 
 " I thought I was to look at the ' Shakespere,' " I 
 began, but I was stopped quickly. 
 
 " You are in such a hurry about everything," he 
 said. " There will be time enough by-and-by, when 
 we have got a minute to digest our dinner. Could 
 you not wait till after tea ?" 
 
 The query reminded me that I was still hungry, 
 whatever he might be, and I looked forward to the 
 advent of the latter refreshment anxiously. 
 
 At last it came. Two delicate cups of Sevres china, 
 a tiny tea-pot, and cream-jug. Nothing else ! Not 
 even a wafer-like biscuit, or a shaving of bread and 
 butter. Fred's prophecy rushed on my thoughts, and 
 I began to feel an alarming thinness already. Sleep 
 seemed the only refreshment to fall back upon, and I 
 said " good-night " as early as possible. Uncle did 
 not combat the premature retirement. He saw some- 
 thing of a frugal turn in it, which evidently com- 
 mended itself to his mind. Before I had well left the 
 room, he had bent forward and extinguished the last 
 of his lights. 
 
 Willis had brought me a chamber candlestick, with 
 a morsel of wax end in it not an inch long. The 
 very sight of it quickened my movements to a run 
 when I was outside the library-door. I dreaded being 
 left in darkness before I had time to bury my head
 
 THE GHOST OF A DINNER. 273 
 
 under the bed-clothes where remembrance might be 
 shut out along with the visions. Fortunately, I was 
 given the same room which my mother and I had oc- 
 cupied. I knew something of the localities here, and 
 association brought up what was reassuring rather 
 than affrighting. 
 
 As I threw off my dress, I recalled the little parcel 
 in the pocket, and I took it hastily out. The wick of 
 the candle was still manfully fighting for life, and the 
 brightest gleams preceded the close of the struggle. 
 In one of these I undid the paper wrappings of my 
 packet, drew out and unclosed a morocco case, and 
 saw something within which caused me a start of 
 astonishment. 
 
 It was the sparkle of an emerald set within an ex- 
 quisite border of filagree gold. It was to be used 
 evidently as a brooch, but I did not take it out of its 
 satin cushion where it lay softly embedded. I could 
 only gaze at it in perplexity. Was this a gift from 
 my uncle, with his hard grasp and close watchful eyes, 
 which seemed to turn a key upon everything? 
 
 Another instant, and glitter and gleam were gone, 
 and I was left alike to darkness and bewilderment. 
 
 18
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 STARTLING EVENTS! 
 
 " And thus the heart will break, yet brokenly live on." 
 
 BYRON. 
 
 A CALL in the night is affrighting. The summons 
 has an urgency about it which is answered by a thrill. 
 It may betoken death or danger, and to one who has 
 been wrapped in the soft silent atmosphere of pro- 
 found sleep, it has a startling significance. The 
 senses are not clear to realise or understand. They 
 feel only the mystery of unknown calamity, and recoil 
 from it with a shudder. 
 
 I had been aroused in this wise from the slumber 
 into which I had fallen on the extinction of the light. 
 Some one was knocking at my room door loudly and 
 repeatedly, and I heard my name uttered. 
 
 I sprang up at once, ran to the door, and opened it. 
 To my surprise, there was a stream of early daylight 
 without. I had not known I had slept so long, and 
 my chamber was so draped with heavy curtains both 
 around the bed and windows, that it had seemed to
 
 STARTLING EVENTS. 275 
 
 me here to be the dead of night. The housemaid was 
 standing in the passage, and I asked eagerly at once 
 if anything was the matter. 
 
 " Willis told me to call you, miss," was the reply. 
 " It's just six o'clock." 
 
 " But is my uncle ill ? Is there nothing wrong ?" 
 
 The queries were not unnatural, considering that I 
 had no household duties before me, and I had learned 
 that the breakfast was not to be till ten o'clock. 
 
 The woman looked a little mysterious. Then, en- 
 tering my room with me, she drew back the sombrous 
 hangings, and a cold mournful light was shed upon 
 the scene.' No warmth or brightness had arisen yet 
 with the new day. All lay under a sort of motionless 
 spell, dreary, inanimate. I scanned the maid's face as 
 she stood in the window, and guessed that something 
 unusual had occurred. 
 
 " What is it, Martha ?" I questioned. " What has 
 happened ?" 
 
 Like Willis, she was a dry uncommunicative person, 
 with whom I never could make any way. Indeed I 
 rarely saw her, as her duties seemed principally to lie 
 in the basement story. She was cook, I believe, as 
 well as housemaid. She eyed me slowly now, as if 
 she had to question, rather than answer, and her 
 words were almost an echo of her former ones. 
 
 " Willis wants you, miss. He wants you partikler." 
 
 "At this hour?" I exclaimed. "What can he 
 mean ? What is he thinking of?" 
 
 1 8 2
 
 276 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 But Martha turned away as if she had not heard 
 me, and I presently found myself alone. She had 
 glided out of the room. To obey the summons was 
 the only way to set at rest anxiety or curiosity. 
 
 I was always pretty rapid about dressing, and it 
 may be imagined that I hurried more than usual on 
 this occasion. In fact I was strangely apprehensive, 
 without guessing in the least at the discovery and 
 disclosures that awaited me. When I was ready, I 
 stole quietly downstairs and went towards the parlour, 
 where my mother and I had breakfasted together. 
 The library I did not dare to approach indeed, I 
 believe it was safely locked up every night from in- 
 trusion. 
 
 I had my hand on the parlour door, when I was 
 stopped abruptly. Willis had been watching me from 
 the end of the passage, and he sprang forward to 
 arrest me. 
 
 " Not yet, miss," he exclaimed ; " not yet, for one 
 minute." 
 
 I turned to him in surprise. But one look was' 
 enough. His lank moody face was drawn out to a 
 preternatural length. Whatever was the matter, it 
 was something dark and significant to him. 
 
 He pointed to another door, which I had never 
 seen unclosed before, but which he flung open now to 
 its fullest extent, as if he were about to usher me into 
 a room full of company. What I found inside were 
 very bare walls, and an odour of damp and mouldi-
 
 STARTLING EVENTS. 277 
 
 ness that seemed oppressive almost in this early hour 
 of freshness, when all the senses are quickened to 
 receive more lively impressions. 
 
 Whatever use the apartment had been turned to 
 formerly, it was desolate, deserted, at present; and 
 Willis, with all his stateliness, could not give me even 
 the accommodation of a seat. However, I should 
 most surely not have accepted it, in my eagerness to 
 learn his tidings and rid myself of his presence. My 
 longings, at the same time, did not influence or hurry 
 him in the least. Never very communicative, he 
 seemed to have grown literally dumb now. It was in 
 vain that excitement spoke in my glance, and that I 
 began to question him rapidly, his physiognomy pre- 
 served its immovable gloom, and when he spoke at 
 last it was only in response to a dictate of his own, 
 and in nowise to satisfy my interrogations. 
 
 " Something is happened, miss," he began ; " I don't 
 know if you 'ave aught to say to it. But it's a drefful 
 bad business, and I wash my 'ands of it." 
 
 His tone and air were so lugubrious as he made a 
 motion of throwing off all accountability, that I gave 
 an instinctive start. What had occurred ? Had the 
 house been robbed in the night, and was I accused of 
 the theft ? It appeared to me as if anything might 
 take place in these strange precincts. In an atmos- 
 phere like this no preconception could be more alarm- 
 ing than reality. 
 
 " You will be good enough to explain yourself,
 
 278 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 Willis," I said. " I don't understand this sort of ad- 
 dress. I have doubts that you know what you are 
 saying yourself." 
 
 His countenance, if it were possible, grew a shade 
 darker at the insinuation. 
 
 " Then take your own way of it, miss!" he exclaimed. 
 " I'll neither stay you, nor hinder you. I was for saving 
 yerself a shock. But there's never no thanks for in- 
 terference. You can just step into the parlour anext 
 ye, and see what ye'll find there." 
 
 Curious as I mght be, it was scarcely in the nature 
 of things that I could act upon this permission. To 
 turn the handle of a closed door with a warning point- 
 ing to what lay behind it, would demand a species of 
 nerves too iron-like to be womanly. At all events, 
 they were not such as I possessed, and I had to descend 
 to entreaties, almost apologies, to Willis to move him 
 to more explicitness. At last I knew all, and I paused 
 in a dreamy, troubled inaction, the weight of a new 
 responsibility almost paralysing my thoughts, placing 
 them, at least, in a strange confusion. 
 
 Late on the preceding evening, when I was already 
 in sound sleep, and my uncle, too, had retired to rest, 
 a knock came to the back-door of the Manor-House. 
 An apparent stranger had been admitted, but Willis 
 knew him, even as he stood motionless before him, and 
 for the first time for fourteen years the only son of the 
 house was under his father's roof. Willis confessed to 
 me not alone his perplexity, but his terror. He could
 
 STARTLING EVENTS. 279 
 
 not turn him out, yet to harbour him was worth more 
 than his place to him. Legacy and all might go now. 
 So much it was easy to perceive from his words, though 
 he did not give them quite this candid emphasis. He 
 had granted him, however, neither bed nor board, but 
 had just allowed him access to the parlour, where he 
 had sat during the night. 
 
 " But he won't go now, miss," pursued the man. 
 " That's what's so distractin'. I was in with him afore 
 daybreak, but he declares he'll never quit the place till 
 he has seen the master. May be you could say or do 
 summat with him, miss ?" and for once in his life 
 Willis's voice took an eager tone, and his face showed 
 even an anxious civility. 
 
 " I will see him certainly," I murmured. " But we 
 must think what is best to be done. Oh, how I wish 
 my mother were here ! Could we not send for her ?" 
 
 " There's no way of doing it now, miss," was the re- 
 ply. " But if Master Fred the gen'lman I should say 
 if he'll but leave for the present, we can fix about 
 this afterwards, mayhap." 
 
 " But why such haste ?" I interposed, scanning his 
 troubled countenance. " My uncle need not know he 
 is here till the meeting is arranged for." 
 
 Willis threw up his hands and eyes. " That'll never 
 be, miss. Don't mention it. Don't brathe it in the 
 place. D'ye want to kill the master ? Ye don't know 
 the fits he takes. There's something on his heart, 
 they say."
 
 280 My MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 " I would do nothing without my mother, of course," 
 I said. " But till she comes, you will please to do 
 nothing either. My cousin your young master 
 must remain." 
 
 This was given out with a sudden decision, and I 
 turned at once towards the parlour. Willis's cowardice, 
 his cruelty I may say, had banished my hesitancy. 
 There was something to me inexpressibly mournful in 
 the thought of that lonely watcher in hiding in his 
 father's house, and seeking from the favour of a menial 
 what should have been his by right. There was ner- 
 vousness still to be encountered in the meeting, but no 
 shrinking from the presence of one who was neglected, 
 unhappy. 
 
 That Willis should have applied to me in the emer- 
 gency surprised me at first, but I thought it probable 
 then that, on the occasion of my last visit, my mother 
 had told him of my own partial discoveries, and her 
 further explanation. He was too much at the bottom of 
 the whole sad secret to be left out of our confidence, and 
 she felt, no doubt, that if I were to do anything to- 
 wards changing and softening my uncle, it was not 
 only necessary that I should know all, but that Willis 
 should be aware that I did so. As regarded the cousin 
 whom I was now first to see, I determined in my o\vn 
 mind that I would at once show him that I had learnt 
 of some estrangement betweem him and his father, and 
 of his many years of absence from his home. This 
 would do away with a certain difficulty and embarrass-
 
 STARTLING EVENTS. 281 
 
 ment, which must otherwise interpose between us, and 
 negative any effort at help on my part. 
 
 As Willis slowly opened the door of the parlour, I 
 experienced a slight tremor, but it was gone the next 
 instant, and I stood motionless on the threshold. I 
 could only gaze before me with dimmed eyes. A 
 bowed figure was leaning over the little table where 
 my mother and I had sat together. The head had 
 fallen between the arms, nothing of the face was 
 seen, only grey dishevelled hairs as of an old man. 
 No gesture, no movement betrayed the stranger's 
 consciousness of my presence. He seemed sleeping 
 the tired sleep of sorrow, and I could not break in 
 upon it. 
 
 Stealing away, I signed to Willis to reclose the 
 door, and I returned with him into the room opposite. 
 
 " When does my uncle come down ?" I asked. " It 
 cannot be for hours yet." 
 
 " About nine o'clock," was the reply. " But you 
 don't know him, miss. I think his feelings tell him 
 things afore another can see 'em. I wouldn't dare to 
 leave him there," and he pointed expressively towards 
 the little parlour " not for no money would I risk it, 
 once master's astir." 
 
 " Very well," I said ; " 7'11 risk it." 
 
 The assurance was a terrible one. Willis quailed 
 before it. Then he grew angry and authoritative. 
 He regretted already that he had called upon me for 
 interposition, seeing how little I fell in with his views.
 
 282 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 However, the step having been taken he could not re- 
 call it, and I set myself to keep a kind of watch over the 
 parlour and its lonely occupant. I would not disturb 
 him, and yet I was longing to have the meeting over, 
 to know something of his plans and wishes. 
 
 At length I thought I heard a stir within the room, 
 and entering softly I was face to face with my cousin 
 Frederick. He was standing up, looking towards the 
 doorway, and his gaze at once met mine. I felt tears 
 start to my eyes at the moment, but I resolutely 
 restrained them. There is something in a handsome 
 face, when full of sadness, that speaks direct to the 
 heart. We associate happiness with it naturally, and 
 here there was just the slightest impress of it remain- 
 ing in the sweetness of the glance, in the wan smile 
 of the lips. Despite of worn frame and whitening 
 hairs, a sort of youthful charm lingered in the expres- 
 sion of Frederick Merlin which years had scarcely 
 weakened, which even mental suffering had not wholly 
 effaced. 
 
 I knew from Willis that he was aware of my pre- 
 sence in the house, and it was thus no bewilderment 
 but a kind of appealing earnestness that held his 
 looks fastened on mine. At last he moved forward a 
 step and we grasped one another's hands. He had 
 read in my face what I was too slow to express, and 
 he turned to me as a friend. 
 
 " Don't say I ought to go," he murmured. " Not 
 without seeing him without a meeting with my
 
 STARTLING EVENTS. 283 
 
 father. I have waited for this till I can wait no 
 longer. After so many years of absence it seems to 
 me wrong, fatal to delay now. How can anything 
 become easier or better by this course? You have 
 heard you know of our long estrangement? Can 
 you not feel with me that every minute but widens 
 the gulf till forgiveness is asked and granted ?" 
 
 That last word had hope in it, but how could I give 
 it to him ? Like Willis, I trembled already at the 
 mere thought of my uncle's keen glance, his stern 
 inflexible face. I had but one resource to fall back 
 upon, the help and counsel of my mother. I pleaded 
 with him that we should await this, and promised to 
 send for her as early as possible. The mention of 
 her name was enough. He acquiesced at once, and 
 said he would leave everything trustingly in her 
 hands. I quitted him then to seek for a messenger, 
 and was glad to find Willis preparing a small break- 
 fast-tray to take into the parlour. 
 
 At the moment, however, I got a start by hearing 
 Uncle George's bell ring loudly. Willis had im- 
 pressed me with such a sense of his extraordinary 
 penetration, or presentiments, that I felt as if all must 
 be already discovered. But when I looked at the 
 butler, he only smiled grimly. 
 
 " It's the morning for master's Turkish-bath," he 
 said. " He gets up early then, and isn't he just alive 
 after it ! He'll walk the house by himself, if he takes 
 the fit of it."
 
 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 The picture was alarming, but I could not altogether 
 credit it. His activity, however increased, could 
 scarcely carry him so far as to this roving and inde- 
 pendent state of movement. The worst of it was 
 that Willis set off at once to attend upon him, and 
 left me without help or hint as to the means of pro- 
 curing a messenger to Crystal Lodge. 
 
 An hour later I was wandering about the garden, 
 anxious and uncertain, when I caught the sound of 
 rapid wheels on the road outside the enclosure. To 
 my surprise they drew up at the gateway. Could it 
 be some one from home? I thought. The high 
 wooden barriers around the place shut out a view of 
 the road, but, in a quick impulse, I slipped back the 
 inner bar of the gate and darted outside. 
 
 My face flushed to crimson at the moment. What 
 I saw was Mr. Locke's little tax-cart, and the gentle- 
 man seated within it holding the reins. My action 
 seemed to point to the eagerness of welcome, and 
 explanations might only make matters more em- 
 barrassing. His manner, however, pleasant as usual, 
 soon put me at my ease. 
 
 " You are out early, Miss Wynham," he exclaimed. 
 " But you will say the same for me. I engaged to 
 take a week-day service for a brother clergyman here, 
 who was unexpectedly summoned from home. It is 
 at ten o'clock, so I don't think I am much too soon," 
 and he glanced at his watch. " I was dining at 
 Crystal Lodge last night," he pursued, "and I promised
 
 STARTLING EVENTS. 285 
 
 to execute a little commission on the way, and bring 
 you this parcel from Mrs. Wynham." 
 
 He handed me, as he spoke, a small packet, which 
 I guessed at once contained some work materials that 
 had been forgotten, and which my mother had ar- 
 ranged to send over to me the first opportunity. 
 
 A strange longing seized me at the instant that I 
 could seek advice and assistance from one who would 
 gladly give them, and whose kindness and considera- 
 tion could be so fully depended on. 
 
 He saw the anxious look in my face, though it was 
 checked the same instant. I determined that even a 
 partial confidence could not be ventured upon, without 
 some other sanction than my own wishes. 
 
 " Is there anything I can do for you ?" he asked. 
 " Any message I can bring to the Lodge ? Do not 
 hesitate to give me trouble, if that is in your thoughts." 
 
 " You are very kind," I murmured. " How soon will 
 you be returning, Mr. Locke ?" 
 
 " In less than an hour," he said. " The service is 
 short. Shall I call again? But, yes, I will do so. 
 You will have time then to remember as much as 
 possible, and I want to prove myself a trusty messen- 
 ger. I rather pride myself upon being good about 
 small matters. But perhaps I am depreciating your 
 commissions too summarily," and he smiled pleasantly. 
 " They may be of a very weighty character, but I hope 
 in that case you will have no doubts either." 
 
 " He little knows how near he is to the truth in
 
 286 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 his last remark," I thought to myself as he drove 
 off. 
 
 The next minute I heard Willis calling me, and on 
 going into the house I found that uncle was down 
 and awaiting breakfast. I was a bad dissembler, and 
 met him with such evident nervousness that Willis, 
 who was laying down the coffee-pot, gave me an awful 
 look. This increased my difficulties, for I got red at 
 once, and Uncle George fastened his eyes on me. 
 
 " What are you fussing and flushing about ?" he de- 
 manded. " Is there not breakfast enough ? Is that 
 what is wrong ?" 
 
 I hastened to disabuse his mind of this impression, 
 for I could honestly say I was not hungry, and in 
 point of fact the fare was rather more plentiful than I 
 could have expected. There were hot rolls, eggs, and 
 some other accessories of a fairly substantial repast. 
 The unwonted prodigality was due evidently to an 
 inspiration on Willis's part, for uncle viewed the board 
 angrily, and I heard muttered comments ever and 
 again of " Waste ! waste !" at each morsel that went 
 into. my mouth. I was thinking all the time how I 
 could manage to write a line to my mother to have it 
 ready to give to Mr. Locke as he passed the gateway. 
 My uncle probably would lay claims to my attention, 
 which could not easily be dismissed. If he pinned 
 me down to the morning paper, and wished to be read 
 aloud to, no plea could be put in for release. It was 
 more necessary to please and propitiate him than all
 
 STARTLING EVENTS. 287 
 
 else. Even my mother's arrival could avail little, 
 should she find him in a state of incipient irritation. 
 Most luckily, however, his bath had invigorated him. 
 He showed himself quite equal to a further dive into 
 the columns of the Times, and once I saw him en- 
 wrapped in its folds I made my escape, and had soon 
 pencilled a hasty line to my mother. I had brought 
 no ink, but I had a small supply of stationery with 
 me, and the note was next enclosed in an envelope 
 and ready for delivery to Mr. Locke. Then I stole 
 again into the garden, listened breathlessly for wheels 
 without, and the first moment I heard them advancing 
 along the road, I was at the little wooden gate ready 
 to open it 
 
 When I appeared with my tiny missive, and Mr. 
 Locke drew up to take it, he turned a very earnest 
 glance on me. He seemed instinctively to divine 
 that something was wrong, and his manner took a 
 different tone under the impression. 
 
 " This shall be delivered without delay," he said, 
 placing the letter in his breast pocket. " I will call 
 at Crystal Lodge on my way back. Do not fear but 
 Mrs. Wynham shall have it immediately. You are 
 not looking well," he added suddenly. " I only wish 
 I could give a better account of you at home. I trust 
 nothing has happened ? that your uncle is not ill ?" 
 
 " No, not exactly," I murmured. " But I am a little 
 anxious about him. I have asked my mother to come 
 to me. I hope she will do so."
 
 288 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 " I know she will do so," was his reply ; and then, 
 as I bid him a hurried good-bye, I felt that his eyes 
 were fixed upon me still, and it was only when I had 
 turned away that he gave sudden rein to the pony, 
 and drove rapidly from the spot. 
 
 I stood for a moment alone in the garden, listening 
 to the retreating sound of the wheels. It was almost 
 in a dream I heard it, such misty trouble lay pres- 
 singly upon my heart. The morning was chill, grave 
 even, with a sort of solemn sadness in its still air, its 
 pale horizon, and the withering tints of fallen leaves 
 and flowers. 
 
 The sudden reaction, after recent haste and excite- 
 ment, had caused me a faint bewildered feeling, and I 
 could scarcely wonder at Mr. Locke's questioning 
 gaze. If I might judge by my sensations, there was 
 coldness, if not pallor in my cheeks. Startled so early 
 from sleep, I had not had an instant free from anxiety 
 since, and even now I shrank alike from re-entering the 
 house or deserting the post of watchfulness which was 
 rightfully my place. 
 
 My cousin had promised me to wait, but if, drawn 
 by a quick impulse, by the tone of his father's voice, 
 he should be tempted to any rash action, my care 
 might at this very time be missed and needed. While 
 the thought grew pressing, I was roused by a kind of 
 cry. 
 
 Then I saw the dark figure of Willis on the hall- 
 door steps. He was waving his arms, beckoning to
 
 STARTLING EVENTS. 289 
 
 me wildly. My heart stood still, but for a second. In 
 the next I rushed towards the house, and as I gained 
 the threshold, fear met me as a visible presence. I 
 felt and knew that the dreaded crisis had come. It 
 was too late now to avert it.
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 THE BURNING OF THE PARCHMENT. 
 
 " I stood in the gathering twilight, 
 
 In a gently blowing wind, 
 And the house looked half uneasy 
 
 Like one that was left behind. 
 
 o o o G 
 
 Browned and brooded the twilight, 
 
 And sank down through the calm, 
 Till it seemed for some human sorrows 
 
 There could not be any balm." 
 
 GEORGE MAC DONALD. 
 
 THERE was a voice in the library, a voice which 
 thrilled me as some sight of agony. It was a man's 
 tone, broken by weeping. The door of the room was 
 partly open, but I could not have passed the threshold 
 had not Willis drawn me almost forcibly onwards. 
 When I entered all grew clouded before me in a 
 mist of terrors. I discerned the figure of Uncle 
 George fallen on the ground, and his son kneeling 
 beside him. From his lips the sharp cry had broken : 
 "My father! my father! Oh! have I killed my 
 father?"
 
 THE BURNING OF THE PARCHMENT. 291 
 
 If there can be such a thing as atonement by suf- 
 fering for deeds of sin, surely in that moment he bore 
 the weight of a dread punishment, he won the right 
 to a last forgiveness. 
 
 But uncle's form was motionless. Could he no 
 longer hear or hearken ? Was it death, in truth, 
 which had come? Impelled by a swift fear, I sprang 
 nearer, but Willis interposed. He pointed almost 
 roughly to the broken-hearted son. 
 
 " Take him away !" he exclaimed. " Quick, quick ! 
 Don't let him speak or touch him. He is killing him 
 as it is." 
 
 The man had seized a bottle from the mantelpiece 
 as he spoke some restorative, no doubt, used in these 
 attacks and as he turned towards his master, I 
 caught at my cousin's arm. Willis was right, I felt. 
 If life still lingered, it was not those pleading accents 
 that could recall my uncle to it. He would never 
 open his eyes upon a face he shrank rigidly, resolutely 
 from. 
 
 " Send Martha for a doctor," Willis called after me, 
 as I drew the hapless son from the room, and finding 
 the woman in the hall, I despatched her instantly. 
 
 Alone with my cousin, I learned in a few words the 
 cause of the catastrophe. He had been left so long 
 to himself that he had grown nervously anxious, and 
 had come out into the passage to look for me. At 
 that very moment Willis was in the library, removing 
 the breakfast things, and the door being fully open, 
 
 192
 
 292 My MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 uncle's quick ear caught the unexpected step. In- 
 stantly he grasped his stick, and before the butler 
 could stop him, had got as far as the doorway. One 
 glance here revealed all. 
 
 The son had paused to listen for his father's voice, 
 and at the same instant that father was before him. 
 He could not restrain the impulse. Now or never, he 
 felt he must throw himself at his feet ; and he sprang 
 forwards. But the shock had been too much for my 
 uncle. A spasm of the heart came on, and he had 
 fallen to the ground before his son could reach him. 
 ***** 
 
 Days had passed over. It was the dusk of evening, 
 and a low sigh stirred the trees around the Manor- 
 House. They were almost leafless now, and looked 
 gaunt and spectre-like in the half light. Their fare- 
 well to summer and brightness had already been said, 
 but they were passing now into thebarrenness of winter, 
 into the look of lifelessness which they must wear for 
 long. 
 
 I felt inexpressibly mournful. Something seemed 
 to hang over the earth which I could not penetrate, a 
 veil of sorrow that enshrouded it, encompassed it. I 
 who had known hitherto only the rush of a quickening 
 warmth through my veins, was held under the dreamy 
 spell of awe, of foreboding. Who can hope when 
 Nature is darkened, when the face of Love is hidden, 
 and we read only portents in sights and sounds ? Yet 
 the gloom here was but a faint expression of weightier
 
 THE BURNING OF THE PARCHMENT. 293 
 
 trouble in life. I had been pacing the gravel walk in 
 front of the Manor-House, and as I paused to gaze on 
 the tall melancholy mansion with its background of 
 evergreens, the still chillness of its aspect sent a shiver 
 to my heart. The Shadow of Death was drawing 
 close to it. It seemed already suspended over the 
 portal, but waiting to fall with the approaching pall of 
 the night. 
 
 I had left my mother a watcher by the side of Uncle 
 George in his darkened bed-chamber, where I had sat 
 with her all the day. She had insisted now that I 
 should gain a little refreshment in the open air. But 
 at this hour there was nothing to cheer, there was all 
 to depress, especially when loneliness haunted my 
 footsteps, and deepened the significance of other in- 
 fluences. I could wait no longer. I started from the 
 brooding thoughts which were growing so oppressive, 
 and re-entered the house. As I stole up the staircase, 
 I saw my mother standing on the landing-place above. 
 She pointed towards my uncle's door. 
 
 " He is awake now," she said. " Go in and see him, 
 Ellie. He has asked for you." 
 
 Since the morning on which he had fallen fainting 
 in the library, he had scarcely spoken. He had been 
 carried to his room then, and the doctor who was 
 called in, though he recovered him for the time, gave 
 ao hope of his life. To alleviate the acute pain from 
 which he habitually suffered, my uncle had had re- 
 course, without medical sanction, to a species of vapour
 
 294 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 bath. But in his case there.was a weakened action of 
 the heart in addition to other ailments, and it was 
 this which rendered the mode of relief hazardous, and 
 had all but proved instantly fatal now. He was per- 
 fectly conscious as he lay there motionless and speech- 
 less in his dark canopied bed, and my mother often 
 thought it was not altogether the stupor of illness that 
 held him thus, but his stern shrinking from a subject 
 that might otherwise be mentioned, his inflexible recoil 
 from the presence he was resolute to shut out. 
 
 If this were so, might I interpret his changed aspect 
 for good now ? When I went into the room, his eyes 
 were open, bright with something of their old scrutiny, 
 and fixed themselves eagerly on my face. He had no 
 need any longer to call upon me to advance. I drew 
 closer instinctively. A great pity, if not love, filled my 
 heart for one stricken down so suddenly, whose life had 
 been shut in by the blankness of solitude, the desola- 
 tion of disappointment. If blame must attach for much 
 of this to himself, if the weight of sadness lay not 
 wholly on misfortune, but on obstinate moroseness, 
 such had not made his fate the easier. Our compassion 
 must be the more deeply stirred for one who has to add 
 self-reproach to the inevitable trials of life. When I re- 
 membered his recent gift to me, it pointed to a certain 
 thoughtfulness, and affection even, which my mother 
 had been quick to divine, and which I saw at last glim- 
 mering from out the harsh gloom in which he en- 
 sconced himself.
 
 THE BURNING OF THE PARCHMENT. 295 
 
 He uttered my name now, and looked at me with 
 an appealing earnestness, as if he asked and wanted 
 something. 
 
 " What is it, uncle ?" I said, and bent over him 
 anxiously. 
 
 He did not answer for a full minute, he only scanned 
 my face more penetratingly than ever, till I felt the 
 gaze too fixed to bear, and let my eyes fall under it. 
 
 '' Are you true ?" he murmured then. "True, and 
 to be trusted ? Will you do what I ask instantly, 
 unquestioningly ?" 
 
 A thought a hope sprang to mind. He had re- 
 lented at last ! He would see his son ! A quick 
 response came to my lips, and his glance brightened 
 at the words. He raised himself on his pillow, he 
 drew my hand into his for an instant, and released it 
 as suddenly. But he had left a small key in my 
 clasp, and pointing in the direction of a carved 
 cabinet near his bedside, he signed to me eagerly to 
 open it. The key turned at once in the lock, the lid 
 fell back, and several rows of drawers were disclosed. 
 
 " A lower one," he exclaimed. " The last but one." 
 
 I drew it out and saw two rolls of parchment tied 
 with different-coloured ribbons. One was black, the 
 other red. 
 
 " Here ! here !" he ejaculated. " Bring them to me 
 here." 
 
 His voice had its wonted peremptoriness, the harsh 
 accent of authority that commanded, never pleaded.
 
 296 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 I dared not disregard it, and yet I trembled at what I 
 might be about to do. Some of the few words he 
 had spoken since his attack related to the disposition 
 of his money "My will is made," I had heard him 
 murmur, while my mother and I sat together near 
 his bedside, and then her name was added, followed 
 by mine "All for you, Eleanor, for you and Ellen." 
 
 My mother's distress was shown in her face, but she 
 knew not how to move him. That forgiveness from 
 his only child should be withheld even after death by 
 the cruel blow of disinheritance was a surer mark of 
 his implacability than all else. He had been heard to 
 say, in his first passion, that he would never see him, 
 and that nothing would make him swerve from that 
 vow. But if it were only his adherence to it in the 
 letter that was maintained, he would, at least, prove 
 his pardon by some writing left behind ; he would 
 show it unmistakably by naming him his heir. 
 
 My uncle read the pained hesitation in my face, 
 and as I approached him he almost snatched the 
 papers from me. He had still a strange even startling 
 strength at intervals, though according to the physi- 
 cian's verdict he had not many hours to live. 
 
 He eyed both rolls of parchment feverishly. His 
 mind was as clear as ever, his sight as keen ; and 
 though the different colourings of the fastenings 
 evidently marked the enclosures with definite pre- 
 cision, he satisfied himself still further by an inspec- 
 tion of the dates written outside of each roll. There
 
 THE BURNING OF THE PARCHMENT. 297 
 
 was an instant of doubt, of struggle in his thoughts. 
 His features were wrought upon by the intensity of 
 emotion, and something of a mist passed across his gaze. 
 
 Oh, had his heart turned to that far-away time 
 when a father's love was kindled within it, when all 
 that was happy and hopeful lay before him ? Could 
 he pass over a darker interim ? Could he, at last, 
 forget forgive ? 
 
 Suddenly, with an impulse like a flash, with the 
 rapid movement with which we crush away some 
 object we would look upon no more, he tightened his 
 grasp almost fiercely on one parchment roll. It was 
 that tied with black. The next instant it was thrust 
 into my hands. His eyes gleamed. They had fixed 
 themselves on a bright fire burning just opposite to 
 him in a large old-fashioned grate. 
 
 " Take it !" he said to me. " Throw it there !" and 
 his glance showed too plainly where he meant. 
 " Quick ! quick, girl ! let me see it in the flames !" 
 
 I paused tremblingly. I looked around as for some 
 mode of escape. 
 
 " Do you hear ?" he repeated wildly. " Have you 
 not promised ? Do you dare to disobey ?" 
 
 That voice was enough. Whatever it claimed of 
 me, I must fulfil. I was pledged, as he said. I 
 sprang forward a step or two, then stopped. 
 
 " Oh ! uncle !" I exclaimed. 
 
 " Burn ! burn !" he broke in, in a sort of agony, 
 and at the words fear fell upon me for what his
 
 298 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 emotion might evoke. Like one driven to action by 
 an irresistible force, I reached the fireplace ; my 
 grasp on the packet relaxed ; the next instant it was 
 in the middle of the blaze. 
 
 I stood motionless gazing on it, as the red flames 
 curled around the tightened roll, just scorching it at 
 first, blackening it later, and finally leaving nothing 
 but a mass of light filmy substance, ready to be 
 wafted away with the next current of air. 
 
 Then I turned to the bed. Uncle's attention had 
 been as strained to watchfulness as my own ; but 
 when the conflagration was accomplished, the destruc- 
 tion of the paper complete, he sank back with a groan. 
 I was at his side eagerly. A swift change had passed 
 into his face. 
 
 " Call your mother," he murmured. " Call her, 
 Ellen ; I am dying !" 
 
 The tone, the look were enough. The truth of his 
 words was written visibly before me. There was not 
 a second to be lost, and the courage of despair came 
 to me. Death breaks down all barriers. I was afraid 
 no longer. I saw the bowed head of a broken- 
 hearted man, of him who awaited one word of hope in 
 hiding like a criminal. / He seemed to be gazing at 
 me imploringly, reproachfully. I could refrain no 
 longer. 
 
 " Oh, uncle ! see him ! see him !" I cried, and fell 
 almost on my knees beside him. " See your son ! 
 forgive him before it is too late !"
 
 THE BURNING OF THE PARCHMENT. 299- 
 
 He made a motion as of denial. 
 
 " Oh, don't refuse it !" I besought. " Don't, don't 
 turn away ! What is the earth any longer ? What 
 is worth anything but peace, pardon ? Think of our 
 Saviour's love, His pitiful love, His dying forgive- 
 ness." 
 
 I had caught his clasp in mine. The tears were 
 raining from my eyes, and they fell in large drops 
 upon his hand. He seemed to give a slight pressure 
 with it at the moment. A cry of thankfulness rose 
 to my lips, and I darted from the bedside. 
 
 Assent had been granted at last I would interpret 
 it as nothing else. I might still be in time, and 
 rushing from the room, I opened a door opposite. Its 
 occupant was standing up, watching, waiting breath- 
 lessly for some such summons. I had no need for a 
 word. He obeyed the quick call of my look. It told 
 all of death, of hope. 
 
 Another instant, and the son was by his father's 
 side. But I fell back with a shiver. Something had 
 entered the chamber even in that second of absence. 
 A cold, still presence filled it now ; it gave place to 
 none, it would yield to no right, no entreaty of the 
 most anguished heart. 
 
 Frederick Merlin stood at last near the parent he 
 had grieved. But no gaze was turned on him, no 
 hand was outstretched to him. The meeting he had 
 pictured so often, the pardon which was to be granted 
 to his penitent appeals partook of a deathly silence.
 
 300 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 Nothing might break it. It was icy, unutterable. 
 With a sharp lamentable cry, he flung himself on his 
 father's breast. 
 
 " Oh ! one word, one look !" he implored. " Oh, 
 do not die, father, till you have forgiven me !" 
 
 But never in this world was his woe to be healed. 
 Never was he to know what he had pined and prayed 
 for during long lingering years of remorse. He must 
 look away from earth, if he would gain forgiveness 
 now. There was but One whose loving face would 
 not be hidden from him in his despair. Tears were 
 shed in vain upon the white unconscious face of the 
 dead. He must go with them to Him who " liveth 
 and is alive for evermore," to the Saviour whose heart 
 is always open, who never turns away.
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 AN UNEXPECTED VISITOR. 
 
 " The spirit- world around this world of sense 
 
 Floats like an atmosphere, and everywhere 
 Wafts through these earthly mists and vapours dense 
 A vital breath of more ethereal air." 
 
 LONGFELLOW. 
 
 SOMETHING may come to us when hope has left, 
 when distrust of our wishes, doubt of our own plans 
 have led us not to despair but to patient reliance on 
 the Higher Power which giveth not for time alone, but 
 for eternity. 
 
 The shock caused to my mother by the news of 
 Uncle George's death was followed by deep, sorrowful 
 sympathy for another, for his unhappy son. She 
 blamed herself that she had not sooner attempted a 
 reconciliation between him and his father; that she 
 had forced him to risk it on his own account, and 
 thus lose every chance of a successful issue. Yet 
 no one could have foreseen what ensued. At the 
 very time when she was doing all that she could in 
 sending me on this ill-fated visit to the Manor-House,
 
 3 02 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 other action interposed, and her plans were unex- 
 pectedly baffled. 
 
 Frederick Merlin understood this without a word of 
 explanation, and reproaches were the last things to 
 come into his thoughts ; but the sight of his deep 
 anguish, his despair almost moved both my mother 
 and myself to regrets which verged well-nigh on self- 
 upbraiding. The destruction of the will haunted me 
 ceaselessly, and followed me even into my restless 
 dreams with a dread significance. That moment 
 when I stood beside the blazing fire, with my uncle's 
 eyes lit up by a feverish gleam fixed so intently on 
 me ; when my grasp of the parchment relaxed, and 
 it disappeared amid the flames that moment was 
 lived again and again in terrors of the imagination. 
 I thought that with that act of mine I had sealed the 
 implacability of the dying man, and had cut off a last 
 hope from his son. That this should have been my 
 part in the sad drama, must cause more than a pass- 
 ing sorrow; .its effects could never be reversed now, 
 and however unwilling an agent I had been, the deed 
 must be remembered and lamented. I told my mother 
 all, but at first she was too overwhelmed fully to un- 
 derstand the story, and it was only later that she gave 
 me a degree of comfort. "If there were two wills," 
 she said, "the destruction of the earlier one could not 
 matter, or effect any changes in the wishes expressed 
 in his last attested writing. I suppose he still kept 
 his first will, in which his only son was naturally named
 
 AN UNEXPECTED VISITOR, 503 
 
 as his heir. It was drawn up, I remember well, about 
 a year or two after my marriage, and before any of 
 the unfortunate disclosures had come to his know- 
 ledge. Your father was one of the witnesses of his 
 signature, and this makes me recall the fact." 
 
 " And the second will ?" I inquired : " what are the 
 bequests in it ?" 
 
 " I knew nothing of it until the other night, Ellie," 
 she returned. " Your uncle murmured something then 
 about having left everything to me, in reversion for 
 you. I did not think at the time he was so near his 
 end, and hoped all that would be changed. But if 
 this was his last testament it would of course stand in 
 law, whether the earlier could be produced or no. It 
 is grievous to think he should have still shrank from 
 reconciliation, and have shown this feeling by destroy- 
 ing any paper which contained mention of his son's 
 name. But beyond this you have, I believe, no cause 
 for special distress in regard to the burning of the 
 parchment." 
 
 This conversation with my mother took place the 
 night before the funeral. The latter was to be at an 
 early hour in the morning, and the will was to be 
 opened immediately afterwards. 
 
 It is difficult to tell with what feelings of thankful- 
 ness, even happiness, we learnt the contents of the 
 sealed parchment which was left. An unexpected 
 disclosure came to light then. It was the later will 
 which had been destroyed the earlier was preserved,
 
 304 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 and that this was not due to any error or confusion was 
 rendered sufficiently plain by a fevvpencilled lines which 
 were written outside. My uncle intimated here that 
 he had made a different disposition of his property, 
 but that if he found it possible to forgive even at the 
 latest moment of his life, he would destroy the subse- 
 quent document, and preserve this. It was evidently 
 the great struggle in his mind to bring himself to this 
 act of pardon, that I had been a troubled witness of, 
 and had interpreted so differently. While he kept 
 therefore to his sworn words never willingly to see his 
 son in life, he showed that his heart was not altogether 
 so hard and unrelenting as his rash vow had made it 
 appear. 
 
 My uncle's possessions were much larger than any 
 one had at all an idea of, and a recent codicil was 
 added to his will, leaving a handsome legacy to my 
 mother, and also a remembrance to me. But nothing 
 brought such grateful emotions to her heart, at least, 
 as the knowledge that her' prayers and longings had 
 not been sent forth in vain, and that a forgiveness so 
 unexpected had come to the poor broken-hearted son, 
 who if he had sinned much had sorrowed and suffered 
 long. She wished him to make his home with us for 
 the present, but in his failing state of health it was 
 thought advisable he should go on the Continent as 
 soon as possible, and reside there during the winter 
 months. After the funeral, however, he remained at 
 Crystal Lodge for a week or so, and during this time
 
 AN UNEXPECTED VISITOR. 305 
 
 we saw a good deal of Mr. Locke. His kindness and 
 attention were unremitting, and without any intrusion 
 into a present grief, or the particulars of that which 
 was bygone, he contrived to impart comfort to the 
 mourner who was so deeply stricken. When we are 
 brought near to death the thoughts turn instinctively 
 to what lies beyond it, and it is in a moment like this 
 that one whose own view is drawn upwards from earth 
 finds it possible to speak to another in less strange 
 accents. Once unseen things gain something of reality 
 for the mind, it is open to think of them, to hear of 
 them ; and he, to whom they are already the breath of 
 life and hope, is no longer looked upon as a visionary 
 or enthusiast. He comes to us as a true helpful friend 
 who, happy in faith himself, would lead others into the 
 bright atmosphere of belief. 
 
 A trace of latent sensitiveness and reserve influenced 
 the curate in ordinary intercourse, and he could not 
 always bring into prominence what was evidently the 
 leading interest of his own thoughts. Yet it stole out 
 sometimes like a hidden stream, shut out perchance 
 by overhanging banks, but which is there all the time, 
 clear, deep, constant, ready at any moment to let its 
 pure voice be heard by a longing or listening ear. 
 
 My mother had known but little of Mr. Locke before 
 this. But now they had many and interesting conver- 
 sations together, and she gladly continued the arrange- 
 ment which left Fred under his care and tutelage. 
 
 After my cousin Frederick's departure, matters 
 
 20
 
 306 My MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 resumed pretty much their accustomed routine with 
 us. My father was rather more engaged than usual 
 with business affairs regarding the sale of the Manor- 
 House, and other transactions which he undertook in 
 the absence of my cousin, but my mother soon fell 
 into her former round of quiet duties. I was left a 
 good deal to myself, and in the absence of any im- 
 mediate occupation I felt somewhat lonely I might 
 almost say melancholy. The excitement of work had 
 died out, also that attendant on the disclosures 
 respecting Uncle George and the return of his son, 
 Now I had nothing to do or think of, but what 
 voluntary plans or wishes claimed of me, and it is 
 needless to say that the tendency to inertness often 
 predominates when there is no apparent object in 
 action. It is more especially so., perhaps, when the 
 physical strength is at a low ebb. I had not passed 
 through the trying scene of a deathbed and the 
 anxieties which had preceded it without some shock 
 to my nerves. I was startled and troubled at first,. 
 and even still I could not shake off a sort of be- 
 wildered feeling as if I were called upon to aid and 
 act, and was unable to do so. If any one could have 
 roused me up it would have been Fred, who was as 
 mirthful and mischievous as ever. Nothing could 
 depress the elastic spring of his spirits. No doubt or 
 difficulty presented itself more than momentarily to 
 his mind, and thus he was scarcely ever pursued by 
 retrospects or regrets.
 
 AN UNEXPECTED VISITOR. 307 
 
 One morning I was sitting rather absently in the 
 library, when he broke in on my meditations. I had 
 a book open in my hands which I had just taken down 
 from one of the shelves, but I must confess I was not 
 very deeply engaged in its perusal, so that his sudden 
 action was the more excusable. He shut it up with 
 a clap, and gave me a sort of rousing seizure round 
 the waist at the same time. 
 
 "Come, Nell!" he exclaimed, "look alive there! 
 Some one is coming across the lawn with a clerical 
 step, and a weighty air. There's tidings in the wind 
 I can tell it by the mere flap of his coat-tails." 
 
 " I thought you had only just returned from Mr. 
 Locke," I said. "I wonder you did not join company 
 together on the walk, since he follows you so soon." 
 
 " Mr. Locke !" he ejaculated, and broke into a loud, 
 irritating laugh. " Did I say it was he ?" 
 
 " Who else ?" I cried, and tried not to show annoy- 
 ance in a blush. 
 
 " Then he's the only parson in the world the only 
 one for you, at all events, Nell ?" 
 
 " You talk such folly," I stammered. " He is the 
 clergyman who comes here oftenest, and the one, 
 therefore, the most likely to be expected. You know 
 that as well as I do, Fred." 
 
 "Well, yes," he rejoined, with another provoking 
 glance; "he is most attentive I admit all that. 
 Still, Nell, you might, by a great stretch of imagina- 
 tion, conjure up somebody else." 
 
 20 2
 
 3 o8 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 " I wish I could, by a slight stretch of authority, 
 get rid of you and your nonsense," I exclaimed. 
 " You are growing a greater tease than ever." 
 
 " Certainly a 'greater,'" said Fred, drawing himself 
 to his full height. " I have shot up considerably, and 
 developed correspondingly within the last month or 
 two. Every one notices it." 
 
 " I wonder you are not ashamed to draw attention 
 to the fact, considering how extremely childish you 
 are still," was my retort. 
 
 " In what way, Nell ?" 
 
 "In every respect." 
 
 " But a child is amenable. I thought you made 
 some complaint of me on that head ?" 
 
 A loud ring at the hall-door prevented the possi- 
 bility of reply. 
 
 " I told you so !" cried Fred, and inflicted a terrible 
 pinch, by way of bringing me to a sense of his accu- 
 racy and acuteness. 
 
 I had not contested either, so I revenged myself 
 by a push. 
 
 " You had better fly and open the door, since you 
 are so eager !" I exclaimed. " An arrival seems an 
 event to you. I am not so easily excited." 
 
 " Yet you are crimson this minute, Nell yes, posi- 
 tively purple," he reiterated. " I do believe you still 
 think it is Mr. Locke." 
 
 I began to wish my push had been more violent, 
 and had propelled him entirely out of my presence.
 
 AN UNEXPECTED VISITOR. 309 
 
 However, he disappeared pretty quickly as it was, 
 and I was left a moment of peace. 
 
 I stole a furtive glance in the mirror over the 
 mantelpiece, and discovering that my cheeks were 
 by no means in the feverish state that Fred had an- 
 nounced, I prepared myself for an appearance in the 
 drawing-room. Visitors were not very frequent at 
 this early hour, and as he had declared the gentleman 
 was not Mr. Locke, I was just in the slightest measure 
 curious as I turned the handle of the door.
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 MANY-COLOURED LIFE. 
 
 " Then gently scan your brother man, 
 
 Still gentler, sister woman ; 
 Though they may gang a kennin' wrang, 
 To step aside is human." 
 
 BURNS. 
 
 WHEN I entered the drawing-room, my mother was 
 there, also Fred, who was in an attitude, so to speak, 
 and, the instant he saw me, proceeded to an expressive 
 gesture with the back of his hand, as if he would pre- 
 pare me for the worst. His action, however, failed to 
 impress me very alarmingly now. I saw the desire of 
 teasing behind it, but nothing of graver import. If I 
 were to be worked into a panic every time his look 
 and motions induced it, I should be in a state of cease- 
 less agitation. Our rector, Mr. Horton, was the visitor 
 on the present occasion, and there was little in his 
 quiet air and well-balanced frame to connect him with 
 exciting intelligence. 
 
 At the same time, there was undoubtedly a trace of 
 unwonted eagerness in the manner in which his chair
 
 MANY-COLOURED LIFE. 311 
 
 was drawn close to my mother's, and but for Fred's 
 absurd antics I might have supposed he really had 
 news to impart. His back was turned towards me 
 when I entered, but as I came more into the fore- 
 ground, he rose and gave me a hearty grasp of the 
 hand. He was one of those gentlemen who incline 
 easily towards so much friendliness, but are not par- 
 ticularly mindful of you in other respects. While he 
 held your hand he was heartiness itself, but with a 
 greeting of the kind, any further attention seemed to 
 be dispensed with, at all events as regarded the claims 
 of young people. He was slightly pompous, and had 
 generally an air of business and authority about him 
 which condescended greatly in bestowing so much 
 notice on minor mortals. For my part, a conversation 
 with him would have been too awful to contemplate, 
 and utterly impossible to compass, so it was with real 
 thankfulness I fell in with his views of politeness, and 
 escaped thus easily from his scrutiny. 
 
 To my mother he was plainly disposed to be commu- 
 nicative now, and Fred was listening with all his ears. 
 
 " You must excuse an early call, my dear Mrs. 
 Wynham," he began. "But I have an engagement 
 for the afternoon, and I was anxious to be the first to 
 convey the present intelligence to you." 
 
 At these words Fred, who had crept close to me 
 unseen, gave me such a pinch on the arm that I almost 
 screamed. My mother glanced over at him, and he 
 drew himself up grave as a judge. The rector was,
 
 312 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 fortunately, a little deaf, and too much impressed 
 with a sense of his own dignity to realise the possi- 
 bility of offence to it. He continued, therefore, with 
 calm importance. 
 
 " This affair, of course, affects me primarily, but it 
 has influence, too, upon your views and arrangements. 
 Mr. Wynham will like to know of it at once. I have, 
 therefore, thought it well not to delay the communica- 
 tion." 
 
 I could have wished that his deeds were as good as 
 his words, for it appeared to me he was delaying con- 
 siderably over it. However, a query of my mother's 
 brought him at last to the point. 
 
 " Do I understand you to speak of anything in con- 
 nection with Mr. Locke ?" she asked. " Will he be 
 unable to continue the tuition with Fred ?" 
 
 " My dear Mrs. Wynham, you are penetration itself. 
 Your mother's heart sees the point at once," and Mr. 
 Horton gave a sort of solemn fold to his hands. "Mr. 
 Locke is to leave us. He deserts a double post in the 
 parish ministerial and educational. I need scarcely 
 say that it is a blow to me, for it is difficult in these 
 days of doubts and diversities of thought to find any 
 one of sufficient gravity to maintain a proper balance. 
 It is impossible to know what flights these new-fledged 
 parsons may take, and, for a curate, one is obliged 
 generally to fall back upon the recruiting ranks. I was 
 most singularly fortunate about Mr. Locke. He was 
 seven years in the diocese before he came to me, as-
 
 MANY-COLOURED LIFE. 313 
 
 sistant curate to a brother clergyman who is one of my 
 oldest friends. I had no risk to run in his case." 
 
 " I am very sorry for all our sakes to lose him," in- 
 terposed my mother. " But I hope the move leads to 
 promotion for him." 
 
 " Certainly it does," said Mr. Horton decisively, "or 
 I scarcely think he would leave me. He has been 
 presented to an uncommonly nice living about twenty 
 miles from this. I know the place well. Poor old 
 Grimshaw held it for years." 
 
 Fred, who had in some way scented out something 
 of this news already, could restrain himself no longer. 
 
 " I suppose he will get married now, sir ?" he broke 
 out eagerly. 
 
 Mr. Horton bent his eyes rather keenly on him at 
 the query. Then his face relaxed into a smile. 
 
 " Eh, my young gentleman, is that your idea of 
 settling in life ?" he exclaimed. " Your one view of 
 promotion ?" 
 
 " I thought it was Mr. Locke's, at all events," said 
 Fred unblushingly. " We heard he was engaged." 
 
 " Very probably," returned the rector quietly. " I 
 have noticed a certain abstraction about him of late 
 which would favour the supposition." 
 
 "But the report started with you, sir," pursued 
 Fred. "At least we understood so. I never quite 
 believed it." 
 
 Mr. Horton eyed him again, and my mother showed 
 some uneasiness for his audacity.
 
 314 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 " The report emanated from me ?" murmured the 
 gentleman. " Impossible ! I never knew anything 
 of the matter, and I most certainly never spoke of it. 
 Who could have said such a thing ?" 
 
 "My aunt Rachel," said Fred boldly. "It was 
 she who told it here." 
 
 " Fred, Fred, you should not talk so much," inter- 
 posed my mother hastily. " You overhear a word 
 spoken, and perhaps take it up quite erroneously." 
 
 " / didn't that is what aunt must have done," he 
 began. 
 
 " Miss Wynham is a most superior lady," said the 
 rector solemnly. He liked Aunt Rachel. She paid 
 him a certain deference which accorded with his tastes, 
 and it rather grated on his feelings to find a personage 
 of her dignity under the criticism of a boy. " I see 
 how the mistake must have arisen," he pursued, after 
 an instant's pause. " Miss Wynham was here when 
 Mr. Locke arrived first, and in speaking about his 
 leaving his former post, some question was asked as 
 to the cause. I said it was owing to a protracted en- 
 gagement which made his position there rather diffi- 
 cult. And so it was ; but it was his sister's engage- 
 ment I alluded to. She and the rector's eldest son, 
 who was curate also to his father, had formed a 
 mutual attachment ; but there seemed no prospect of 
 anything further, the means for a settlement being 
 wanting on both sides, and Mr. Locke felt that it was 
 wiser under these circumstances to make a move else-
 
 MANY-COLOURED LIFE. 315 
 
 where. His sister lived with him then, but lately, as 
 you have heard, the marriage came off, as the gentle- 
 man got a good appointment near London." 
 
 Fred gave one of his long whistles. 
 
 " So that was it !" he murmured. " I knew Aunt 
 Rachel put her foot in it." 
 
 " Fred !" exclaimed my mother again, and tried by 
 a reproving look to check him. But I don't think 
 there was any one he stood in awe of, and the rector's 
 grave figure and sedate tones had no other effect than 
 to make him almost quicker in his own impulses. 
 
 " I said it from the first," he pursued. " I told 
 Nellie so. He wasn't a bit like a fellow tied down 
 far too jolly, too " 
 
 " Mr. Horton, will you come and see our conserva- 
 tories ?" said my mother, despairing of arresting this 
 foolish flow of talk, except by an utter disregard to 
 it. " The camellias are just out, and I know you are 
 an admirer of them." 
 
 The invitation was accepted, and as the gentleman 
 and my mother moved off together, Fred stole beside 
 me. 
 
 " Now, old girl," he began, " who was right ? Isn't 
 Aunt Rachel a duffer ?" 
 
 " But what difference can it make to you ?" I inter- 
 posed. " Really, Fred, you are growing too silly." 
 
 " Too wise, you mean. I see more than you know, 
 perhaps. There's nothing like being sharp." 
 
 " Certainly not, if you want to be disliked. I am
 
 3 1 6 MY MO THERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 sure Mr. Horton can have no fancy for you. He 
 came to talk to my mother, not to you, and you 
 broke in everywhere in the rudest way." 
 
 " Oh, come, that's too good," he exclaimed. " What 
 is there rude in asking a question, and getting an an- 
 swer ? I'm not going to be lectured on my manners 
 by you, Miss Nell, not till you can steady your own 
 tones in company, and look less like a turkey-cock 
 when any one addresses you." 
 
 As usual, I might expect to get the worst of it in 
 a contest with Fred, and I left him then and there, 
 and went back to my book in the library. My father 
 came in from riding presently, and at luncheon the in- 
 tended departure of Mr. Locke was announced to him. 
 
 " When does he leave ?" he asked. " What is to be 
 done with you, then, Master Fred ?" 
 
 " Won't you take me in hand yourself, sir ?" said 
 Fred anxiously. 
 
 He had too much liberty at home, with his pony 
 and various other indulgences, to view the prospect of 
 school complacently. 
 
 My father smiled. 
 
 " You want too easy lines," he replied. " I have not 
 time to keep you half hard enough at work, nor in- 
 deed, I think, had Mr. Locke either. You need dis- 
 cipline as much as instruction." 
 
 Fred looked a little subdued, and I was glad to see 
 that for once something of thoughtfulness stole into 
 his countenance.
 
 MANY-COLOURED LIFE. 317 
 
 " Mr. Locke remains here a couple of months still," 
 said my mother in answer to my father's first ques- 
 tion. " That will give us time to think and consider 
 what is best. Mr. Horton very kindly came over this 
 morning to let us know that the change is to be. He 
 has to look out himself for another curate at once, 
 and seems rather anxious about the matter. It will 
 not be easy, indeed, to find a substitute for Mr. Locke. 
 I believe he is liked by every one." 
 
 " I'm right sorry he is going," broke out Fred. 
 " There's not a bit of humbug in him, and if he is 
 strict even, one doesn't mind it somehow. He has a 
 kind look all the while. He is only determined 
 never cross." 
 
 Fred's testimony was borne heartily to the merits 
 of his tutor. He and Mr. Locke had become fast 
 friends, and, independent of his loss of him as an in- 
 structor, I knew he would miss him often on the 
 pleasant walks and fishing excursions which they took 
 together. 
 
 This news, however, and the discussions consequent 
 on it,lost something in freshness and interest by the still 
 more unexpected tidings which reached us presently. 
 
 A few mornings later the surprise came. My 
 father, after the perusal of one of his letters at the 
 breakfast-table, threw it down excitedly and pushed 
 back his chair with vehemence. 
 
 " Eleanor, you'll never believe it !" he cried. " I 
 can't credit it myself."
 
 3i8 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 "What is it?" exclaimed my mother. "There is 
 nothing wrong, I hope, Richard ?" 
 
 " I don't know I really can't say. It may be all 
 right but I shouldn't have judged it so," and the 
 discarded letter was caught up suddenly, and passed 
 across the table. " Read that," pursued my father, 
 " and see what you think. The particulars I have 
 not gone into. The news in itself was enough. 
 Rachel is going to be married." 
 
 Fred gave a bound from his seat, and as Dick was 
 next to him, he sent him spinning from his stool with 
 his impetuous action. To disturb one of the juvenile 
 circle was to upset all. I remembered that to my 
 cost, and was glad to find that it was not only under 
 my rule that disasters occurred. Dick, to save him- 
 self, caught at George's sleeve, and another downfall 
 seemed imminent. If George could have relaxed his 
 hold of either mug or bread and butter, the catas- 
 trophe would have been lessened. But that would 
 have been to ask too much of human nature. He 
 clung to these through all. It mattered comparatively 
 little to him that a stream of his hot cocoa was sent 
 adown Merylle's neck, that his sticky slice was 
 smeared over my shoulder, as his other hand made a 
 wild grasp at it for arrest. He kept mug and bread 
 to the last, and arose from a struggling contest on 
 the ground with Dick minus beverage and butter, but 
 not otherwise despoiled. 
 
 " George is intolerable," I exclaimed. " I put on a
 
 MANY-COLOURED LIFE. 319- 
 
 fresh collarette this morning, and sooner than let go- 
 his dreadful hunch, he rubs it all over me." 
 
 But my charge was unheard amid the outcries from 
 Merylle. She had jumped up to shake herself, but 
 the process only gave her renewed shocks from the 
 hot stream which she had set more fully in motion. 
 
 Dick was the only one who had escaped injury,, 
 owing to his india-rubber properties. He was soon 
 on foot, and he made a dart at once towards my 
 mother. 
 
 "Do tell us!" he cried. "Tell us all, mother. 
 Will Aunt Rachel be a bride like Katie Maynard ? 
 But she could never 1 ! be that. It's all humbug. She 
 couldn't be married." 
 
 He had a vision before his eyes of a very young 
 and pretty girl in her floating wreath and veil, whose 
 wedding we had gone to see a few days previously. 
 
 " I wish, Richard, you had not spoken before the 
 children," said my mother, trying to keep her coun- 
 tenance. 
 
 " What does it matter ?" said my father rather 
 gruffly. " Rachel is quite determined. Sooner or 
 later they must have known." 
 
 It might as well have been the " later," I thought 
 to myself, but my mother, always gentle, said nothing. 
 After all, except to the eyes of the children, there 
 was nothing so very impossible or preposterous in the 
 contemplated step. Aunt Rachel was still between 
 forty and fifty, and though to a girl in her teens that
 
 3 20 MY MO THEKS DIAMONDS. 
 
 age seemed far away in a terrible old-maidenhood, 
 doubtless she viewed her years in a more favourable 
 light herself. The point I found which had evoked 
 my father's irritation, regarded the object of her 
 choice. The gentleman was a foreigner an ad- 
 venturer, he put it some connection of her recent 
 bosom friend, the Countess Graukopf. 
 
 " I wish she had never met that woman !" he ex- 
 claimed angrily. " I knew no good would come of it. 
 Rachel is so easily humbugged." 
 
 " Not she," cried Dick, who had caught up the 
 word. " She kept us fearful tight, father, while you 
 were away. She was worse than Ellie." 
 
 " Thank you very much, Dick, for your pleasant 
 mention of me," I said. " I did not expect such flat- 
 tery." 
 
 Meanwhile Fred, who had been the first in commo- 
 tion, was trying to peer over my mother's shoulder as 
 she perused the epistle. Suddenly he gave a jump, 
 and, as usual, I was the one to bear the first shock of 
 his excitement. He made a rush at me, and caught 
 me round the neck till the damaged collarette was 
 ruffled beyond remedy. 
 
 " She's to be married in St. George's St. George's, 
 Hanover Square ! Think of that, Nell !" and he 
 almost choked me with his emphasis. " She has got 
 a count, a reigning duke a prince, I believe! There's 
 no saying what he may turn into before the day. I 
 wonder the affair's not to come off in St. James's."
 
 MANY-COLOURED LIFE. 321 
 
 " Fred, sit down," said my mother quickly. " You 
 had no right to be looking over me, to read what was 
 not intended for you." 
 
 "But isn't it a lark?" he cried. My father had 
 left the room, and he could restrain himself no longer. 
 " Who'd give up now ? Poor dear Nell ! She's grow- 
 ing as old as the hills. But I wouldn't throw even 
 her overboard yet." 
 
 " You will throw something else over, if you don't 
 take care," broke in my mother. 
 
 George was almost gone again, and as his mug had 
 just been replenished by her up to the brim, a second 
 downfall would have been too much, even for her 
 patience. 
 
 Dick was still afoot, and seemed to be revolving 
 possibilities in his mind with arithmetical exactitude. 
 
 " If she goes off with a husband, she can come here 
 no more isn't that so ?" he demanded. " She won't 
 be an old maid, at all events ; and it was that made 
 her cross, wasn't it, mother ?" 
 
 " Go and finish your breakfast, Dick," said the 
 latter, not knowing how else to satisfy him. 
 
 " I hope she will ask us all to the wedding," began 
 Merylie, "and then I shall have to get a new hat. Do 
 you think she will, Ellie ? I would like it of white 
 chip, with corn-flowers." 
 
 " Will there be a big plum-cake ?" put in George. 
 
 It was the first word he had uttered, but the well- 
 weighed query spoke volumes as to his cogitations. 
 
 21
 
 322 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 My mother tried to arrest inquisitiveness. But the 
 tide had been set going, and with six chattering 
 tongues around her, it was not so easy to stem it. 
 For my part, though I was both curious and excited, 
 I was not given much opening for speech at present, 
 amidst the more noisy ebullitions of the others. 
 
 I learnt later that my father was greatly vexed 
 with Aunt Rachel. She had been so reticent as re- 
 garded her recent movements, that no intimation of 
 the eventful step in her life had reached him till it 
 was quite decided on, and the very day settled for 
 the marriage. This naturally produced something of 
 estrangement between them, and he refused to be 
 present at the ceremony. He took a run up to 
 London, however, to see her beforehand, and my 
 mother accompanied him. 
 
 They bade farewell to her then, for immediately 
 after the wedding, Aunt Rachel went over to Ger- 
 many with her husband to reside in his principality, 
 as Fred said ; to squander her money, as my father 
 thought. 
 
 However that might be, she was no longer our 
 maiden aunt, with spare time and energy on hand to 
 take charge of a full household of nephews and nieces. 
 That memorable visit of hers to Crystal Lodge had 
 been her last, and the days of her rule or influence 
 there were ended for ever.
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 SPRING FLOWERS. 
 
 " Life's withered leaves grow green again, 
 
 And fresh with childhood's spring, 
 As I am welcomed back once more 
 Within its rainbow ring 
 
 "And by these holy yearnings, by 
 
 These eyes with sweet tears wet, 
 I know there wells a spring of love 
 Through all my being yet." 
 
 GERALD MASSEY. 
 
 A FIELD of cowslips, touched by an early dew, 
 framed in by umbrageous hedgerows, and lying under 
 the blue of a cloudless sky such seems to have the 
 very breath of youth about it. It draws the happy 
 children by its golden loveliness, by its sweet, joyous 
 atmosphere. Their eyes see another world than the 
 worn, working one without. Here everything is fresh, 
 fragrant, pointing to a sort of unending sunlight, a long 
 holiday in life. Flowers are gathered freely, steps are 
 buoyant, and laughter ringing : every sound is but of 
 
 21 2
 
 324 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 merriment, the song of birds, or the low, pleasant hum 
 of insects amid the waving grasses. 
 
 A beautiful spring day saw the four little ones of 
 our party in a scene of such like enjoyment. Lessons 
 had been suspended in honour of Merylle's birthday, 
 and full liberty was conceded to them to indulge in 
 games or rambles till the bell summoned them to their 
 early dinner. They set out immediately after break- 
 fast, and a couple of hours later I strolled in the direc- 
 tion I had seen them take, and came upon them in 
 their rural delights. Merylle was seated on a mossy 
 stone near the hawthorn hedge, weaving a monstrous 
 ball for dear little Lucy ; and Dick and George scam- 
 pered hither and thither in eager rivalry, vicing with 
 each other in their choice of the freshest and fullest 
 blossoms of the fragrant cowslip, and in the rapidity 
 with which they were poured into their sister's lap. 
 
 Leaning on the wooden gate that gave access to the 
 lawn, I looked at them with a sort of longing intent- 
 ness. It was difficult to repress a feeling of envy 
 almost for their light-heartedness. Mine appeared in a 
 measure to have gone, and it is the one thing which 
 may not be constrained, which no effort of will or desire 
 can summon back to us again. 
 
 Several weeks had passed by, and it was now the 
 fair month of May, when everything in nature springs 
 into quicker life, and a rush of joy is the natural im- 
 pulse of the youthful heart. But Fred's words seemed 
 to be coming true. I might have been " as old as the
 
 SPRING FLOWERS. 325 
 
 hills," so dreamy, rather than buoyant, were my sensa- 
 tions, so lost in a far-away mist was the time when 
 childish hopes were all that I knew, when the day was 
 too short for the innocent pleasures that had to be 
 crowded into it. 
 
 It must have been sadness, surely whether allowed 
 or understood that brought up tears to my eyes as I 
 stood and gazed, while the lines rushed instinctively on 
 my mind : 
 
 " There was a time when meadow, grove, and stream, 
 The earth and every common sight, 
 
 To me did seem 
 Apparelled in celestial light, 
 The glory and the freshness of a dream, 
 It is not now as it has been of yore ; 
 Turn wheresoe'er I may, 
 
 By night or day, 
 The things which I have seen I now can see no more \" 
 
 Can it be that as we pass onwards we lose in trust 
 what we gain in thought ? Or is it that mournfulness 
 steals over the heart, unconsciously and inevitably, 
 like the fading blight that is sent to some strong 
 young frame while health and ardour are prolonged 
 elsewhere ? Life certainly has not the same outward 
 look for all. On some it opens dazzling skies, softest 
 airs, flowers of light. For others, there are the chills 
 of disappointment, passing hopes, lost joys. The 
 earth has a veil on her loveliness, the clouds will not 
 part in a shining rift to the eyes. The very capacity 
 for happiness, the intense yearning for its blissful
 
 326 M Y MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 atmosphere, would seem to form the very conditions 
 for its withdrawal. Like love, it is won often by 
 those who scarcely feel it, who poorly prize it. They 
 to whom it would be " all in all " see it afar off, re- 
 vealed like some celestial vision to the spirit only, 
 inaccessible to the touch. 
 
 I know not wherefore these thoughts should have 
 pressed upon my heart amid the spring sunshine, and 
 with a fair beauteous smile shining full upon the face 
 of nature ; but perhaps if I would, I could have traced 
 them to the effects of a recent parting. 
 
 There is something in friendship too dear to be 
 easily surrendered, and whatever may be thought or 
 said about its life and lastingness in absence, I could 
 not but feel that as the pleasure of intercourse is lost, 
 much must go with it. The time had arrived for Mr. 
 Locke's departure to his new sphere of duty, and on 
 this very morning he had come over to bid us good-bye. 
 
 His visit had been a prolonged one, and he seemed 
 to have a difficulty in saying a final adieu. But as he 
 addressed himself more to others than to me, and I 
 had chanced to meet him on the doorstep when he 
 arrived, ready dressed for my walk, I had at last taken 
 leave of him. I thought he might wish to have a talk 
 about Fred, in whom he felt a deep interest, and I left 
 him alone in the drawing-room with my mother. My 
 father had already gone into the library to write 
 letters for the post, and my withdrawal appeared to 
 follow naturally upon his.
 
 SPRING FLOWERS. 327 
 
 I believe change is welcomed by most young people, 
 invested as it is with the delights of the unknown. But 
 these lie chiefly in imagination, and I had learned to 
 distrust them. 
 
 To me the thoughts of the new curate, who was to 
 replace the one we had known and liked, brought up 
 no inviting train of reverie. I felt instinctively that 
 I should not care for him, and that he would prove 
 stiff and solemn. Yet the qualities I assigned him 
 could be due certainly to no overweight of learning. 
 He was unable to undertake the instruction of Fred, 
 and my father had decided to send the latter to school. 
 It might have been supposed I should hail this arrange- 
 ment as a wise and desirable one. I should be safe 
 now from those sudden attacks both in speech and 
 action which were startling, to say the least of them. 
 Yet strangely enough my sensation was not exactly 
 one of relief. Fred was joyous, and that is an element 
 too alluring in a household to be lightly dispensed 
 with. If he vexed me sometimes, he enlivened me 
 again, and when I pictured his absence from the circle, 
 the light of mirth seemed to have died out in it. True, 
 Dick might still be expected to show himself noisy, 
 and to give trouble with disorder and untidiness, 
 Merylle might become uproarious at her musical ex- 
 ercises, and George rouse us with an occasional outcry 
 for food but these distinctive traits had no reflex 
 action, so to speak. They partook only of the unin- 
 viting nature of selfishness or carelessness. They
 
 328 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 lacked the fun, the lurking humour of Fred's antics, 
 which seldom sprang from a personal standing-point, 
 but had always a well-directed aim upon others. 
 
 Undoubtedly I found them often objectionable 
 at the time from this very cause, but in the abstract 
 they had a certain exciting property which I felt now 
 I should miss. My mother, too, was affected in- 
 sensibly by the approaching separation, and whenever 
 her spirits were overcast a shadow fell naturally upon 
 mine. She had felt and allowed that the step, as 
 regarded Fred, was an unavoidable one, and had 
 fully agreed in my father's desires and decisions. 
 Still this acquiescence did not altogether free her 
 from a regret that a change of the kind had to come. 
 It seemed to separate her in a measure from that 
 time of earliest hope and happiness when children 
 are a mother's very own, and when they lie, by her 
 right to an exclusive care and loving watchfulness 
 over them, closest to her heart. She had had her 
 number as yet unbroken. The system of home 
 education which she had not only planned but 
 accomplished had never let one be missed even 
 temporarily from the circle. It was this circum- 
 stance which had caused an increase of wonder and 
 perplexity in my mind when I learned first of her 
 intention to leave us herself for a distant destination, 
 and a prolonged absence. She often called us "her 
 diamonds," and looked round upon us with eyes 
 sparkling with joy and tenderness ; and well I knew
 
 SPRING FLOWERS. 329 
 
 and understood now that it was no eagerness to 
 recover a long-lost treasure for its mere intrinsic 
 value that had led to this departure. She was 
 yielding rather to an irresistible impulse of the same 
 true-hearted affection that made her own darlings so 
 dear to her. Even in their midst she could not 
 forget the strong ties of kindred or the claims of 
 duty. She preserved amongst her own more im- 
 mediate interests that fulness of sympathy which can 
 stretch out a hand of love and help to others. 
 
 She had spoken to me often of late of Fred's 
 prospects, and of her* mingled hopes and anxieties 
 respecting the approaching step. 
 
 " I trust all may go well and happily with him," 
 she had said to me only that morning. " He is so 
 light-hearted," she added, " he does not think as yet 
 of trouble or change himself. But I know he will 
 miss a good deal when the separation has actually 
 come." 
 
 " Yes, mother," I had acquiesced, " and I am afraid 
 we shall miss him, too. He was a great tease, no 
 doubt, but he was a dear old fellow all the same. I 
 can't imagine the house without him, and his wild 
 spirits. There will be quite a void in it." 
 
 As yet, however, I had not arrived at this blank 
 stage in my experience. While I still leant upon the 
 rustic gate, and gazed in on the cowslip field, there 
 was a quick step behind, followed almost instan- 
 taneously by an imprisonment of my arms. The
 
 330 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 clasp was tight and aggressive as ever, but for once I 
 bore it without violent rebuff. 
 
 " Fred, Fred ! I thought you were off for a ride," 
 I cried. " What brings you here in such a rush ?" 
 
 " What sends you up into the clouds ?" was his re- 
 tort. " I am home this half hour, and had a good gallop 
 all over the country beforehand. ' We take no note 
 of time but by its loss.' You should have an alarm- 
 clock set at your ear, Nell. It would keep you alive, 
 and be miles ahead of these gewgaws," and he gave a 
 sudden jerk to my new coral "drops/' a birthday gift 
 which I was especially proud of. Pain brought back 
 my protective petulance to me forthwith, and I sent 
 him flying off pretty fast. 
 
 " Really, Fred, you put no limits to sufferance," I 
 exclaimed. " I bore with your dreadful squeeze of 
 my arms and said nothing. But I don't believe 
 you are ever satisfied till you have made me cry 
 out." 
 
 " I wanted to rouse you, Nell. You did look such 
 a mope when I came up. Your thoughts were no- 
 where ; a mere touch would have been ghostlike to 
 you. A good honest shake was far better. Now, 
 what were you mooning over, I'd be glad to know ?" 
 
 " Nothing, of course, since my thoughts were no- 
 where." 
 
 " Nowhere present, I mean. It was the absent was 
 in your eye. I'll lay any money on that." 
 
 " The absent what ?"
 
 SPRING FLOWERS. 33! 
 
 " It isn't a thing, Nellie, it's a body, to be sure. 
 Not your own, though you are losing all substantiality. 
 Still, I wouldn't say you were quite spiritual yet. It 
 was another form you were gazing at a manly one 
 in a clerical coat." 
 
 " Was I ?" I said. " I don't think so. If any one 
 was in my mind it was yourself." 
 
 " I in your mind, Nell ? Don't try to force that 
 stunner on me," and he gave a sort of incredulous blink 
 to his eye. " I saw some one up at the house worth 
 ten of me as you'd lay a price on us, at all events. 
 Now, you needn't get red. Your cheeks don't bear it. 
 They have more than enough to do with the peony 
 stock they have in hand." 
 
 It was in vain to meet him either with indignation 
 or indifference. He ran on in his usual teasing strain, 
 till he had me really provoked. 
 
 " I wonder you haven't some faint idea of what 
 you are talking of," I exclaimed. " You make the 
 most senseless jokes, and cling on to them then, as if 
 they were your only mainstay in life." 
 
 "They are yours. at any rate, my poor old Nellie. 
 Whenever I'm not with you, you're as dull as a duck- 
 pond. All in a muddle beneath, and not a bit of 
 brightness even on the surface. You allow that 
 don't you ?" and he gave me an interrogatory shake. 
 
 It was impossible to return a steady answer under that 
 process, and I did not attempt it. I merely suggested 
 that Merylle required some assistance in the tying of
 
 332 MY MOTHER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 her cowslip ball, and thereupon I was released. There 
 seemed a chance of creating confusion here, and the 
 opportunity was irresistible. But scarcely had he 
 snapped the string of the flowers, hoisted Lucy in his 
 arms, set Dick spinning like a teetotum, and George 
 wailing for the loss of a lollypop dropped in the com- 
 motion scarcely were these deeds successfully accom- 
 plished, than he was back with me again. 
 
 " I say, Nell," he began, "why don't you go in for 
 some fun yourself ? Either that, or put on your spec- 
 tacles with the wiseacres up at the house. I dare say 
 they'd let you into the conclave. I heard the rector 
 asking for you." 
 
 " The rector ?" I murmured. " Is Mr. Horton 
 there ?" 
 
 He broke into a laugh. 
 
 " Why need it be he ?" he exclaimed. " Can there not 
 be two of the same feather ? A curate passes through 
 some mystic change, and he's one no longer. Mr. 
 Locke is not himself at all of late. I can see that with 
 half an eye. Can't you, Nellie ?" 
 
 This was too much. He would never give me any 
 peace on that subject till it, or myself, was worn 
 threadbare. 
 
 " He is not actually a rector yet not until he's in- 
 ducted, or something of that sort," I said dryly. 
 
 " But it's done," he declared. " He has even read 
 himself in. Didn't you miss him last Sunday ? But 
 I know you did. Your head popped down like a
 
 SPRING FLOWERS. 333. 
 
 puppet's when you caught sight of the desolate 
 desk ; you couldn't look up for an age, and I never 
 heard a note from you in the hymns. You were 
 asleep, I think, or dreaming, at all events. I saw you 
 blink like an owl at old Horton's discourse." 
 
 " If you would look about you a little less, you 
 would be saved the trouble of making so many re- 
 marks," I said. " Your glance cast downwards would 
 be a decided novelty too much so, I am afraid. You 
 would have the whole church staring at you." 
 
 " Should I ?" he laughed. " I half think I'll try it. 
 It would be fun to be the centre of all eyes. That's 
 what girls are isn't it, Nell ? One like you, I mean." 
 
 An attempted grasp at his curly locks, in answer to 
 his mocking query, was signally baffled. He made one 
 bound, and vaulting over the gate, which would have 
 swung back easily to admit him, he was amongst the 
 cowslip-gatherers in a trice, and had left me standing 
 in a lonely pose as before. 
 
 I moved on after a little while, and following the 
 track of the pretty lane which wound betwixt the fields, 
 I plucked a few ferns now and again, but in reverie rather 
 than with that deep discrimination as to their beauty 
 and variety which a young lady is supposed to exhibit. 
 I am afraid some of Fred's nonsense had become 
 matter for contemplation, and this was certainly a poor 
 substitute for rational thought or observation. Had 
 he any foundation for his absurdities ? I said to myself. 
 Was it really true that Mr. Locke had been wishing
 
 334 MY MO THER'S DIAMONDS. 
 
 for me, and asking for me? As the mental inquiries 
 were propounded, I had reached a point in the lane 
 where two ways diverged. One led out direct upon 
 the front avenue, the other curved inwards, in the op- 
 posite direction, towards some remote pastures. I 
 paused for a second. Which path should I follow ? 
 The first I should have taken naturally, as I had no 
 object in pursuing a lonely ramble ; but a thought 
 deterred me : I might meet some one here whom I had 
 already left at the house, and had parted from there. 
 I could not appear to be lingering where he must pass, 
 as if I had been waiting and watching for him. 
 
 It is certainly most unfortunate when embarrass- 
 ment interferes with friendliness, or the instinctive 
 action we should otherwise adopt. We lose much of 
 freedom, often of pleasure, by this inconvenient in- 
 truder. But my feelings were no longer under my 
 own control, and a course which could not be followed 
 simply were better resigned. 
 
 I turned suddenly towards the farther route, and 
 as I did so, I experienced a slight sinking of the heart, 
 as if I had myself put a barrier to a possible joy. 
 
 More than once I had fancied that Mr. Locke found 
 it difficult to say a mere friend's good-bye to me, and 
 that some more earnest words than conventional ones 
 were on his lips. But again I rejected the idea, as 
 one born rather of Fred's pursuing jests than of the 
 fuller vision which flashes hope into certainty. 
 
 I walked on deeper into the mazes of the rural
 
 SPRING FLOWERS. 
 
 lane. Still the spring day was lovely, the hedges 
 fragrant, and the air melodious ; and still that misty 
 melancholy gathered around my steps, and shut out 
 half the brightness. 
 
 Suddenly I heard a footfall behind. It was Fred 
 again, I said to myself, and I quickened my pace at 
 the moment almost to a run. I knew that if there 
 were not tears actually in my eyes, there was some- 
 thing so closely approaching to them that I could not 
 have borne his rough and rapid scrutiny. At this 
 movement on my part, a sound stopped me. 
 
 My'name was called " Ellie ! Ellie !" Only that. 
 But it was enough ; more than enough. Never before 
 had the familiar name been uttered by that voice, 
 never by any in such tones of beseeching appeal. 
 
 I turned, and saw Mr. Locke standing but a few 
 paces away. He had paused, but was gazing at me 
 with an intentness which almost in itself must have 
 had the power to arrest me. My heart gave one 
 throb, and then I knew that happiness is not all a 
 dream ; that it comes sometimes when we have ceased 
 to expect it, when we have all but resigned it, when 
 we must take it with a mingling of trembling and 
 ecstasy, as if it were scarce an earthly good. 
 
 Only a moment or two had passed, but all seemed 
 changed. The scene of nature was set in a more 
 golden framework, and the faint atmosphere of sad- 
 ness around my thoughts had floated away into
 
 336 MY MOTHERS DIAMONDS. 
 
 sunlight. Yet even then I paused in my new-found 
 joy, and nothing of doubt, but a motion of deepest 
 thankfulness bore my view farther away than the 
 horizon of time, than the light of a passing day, how- 
 ever loved and lovely. 
 
 Everything was very fair here, bat it took its 
 beauty from afar. There was something yet higher 
 and purer to look to, and my heart repeated the 
 words which were but an expression of the fulness of 
 a happy emotion : 
 
 " There is a smile upon the fields of earth, 
 
 A shine of diamonds on the dew-washed flower ; 
 Yet, as we gaze, a change, a shade hath passed, 
 Nothing will last one single steadfast hour. 
 
 " Nothing below but everything above, 
 
 Where visioned joy a living rapture takes ; 
 One Presence fills a universe of love, 
 And brighter than the diamond, glory breaks." 
 
 THE END. 
 
 BILLING AND SONS, PRINTERS, CUILDFORD, SURKEY.
 
 uc SOUTHERN "EGO* 
 
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