He had not looked at her since she came in, but the pure image in his heart was never brighter than at that moment - he felt what a privilege it was.

'Yes,' Rosalie answered, as she knelt at his side with her hand on his shoulder. Yes it is a privilege to have sisters and brothers, to have any near and dear friends

in this wide world; an unspeakable blessing.'

Is that the blessing you have been crying over tonight?' said Thornton, glancing at her in spite of himself. 'It seems not to afford you much satisfaction. I wish you would speak out at once!' he added impetuously. 'Why don't you tell me that I have done all manner of bad things -shocked you, disgraced myself, and so forth? Say-why don't you ?'

'Because you had said it all to yourself before you came home,' she answered steadily and without looking at him. The words were spoken very gently but in a way not to be contradicted. if indeed he had been so inclined; but among all the qualities, good, bad, and indifferent, that went to make up Thornton's character, a few had never been tampered with. Foremost among these stood truth. The very feeling which had moved him to tell how he had spent the afternoon, was partly good and partly bad. The strong contrast of the quiet rest of Rosalie's hope with his own restless cravings, had wrought upon a mind dissatisfied with itself till for a moment he was willing to make her dissatisfied; but another feeling had wrought too in prompting the disclosure the consciousness that she thought he had been more faithful to her wishes than was the truth.

Therefore when she told him that he was displeased with himself, no word of equivocation passed his lips; though he coloured deeply.

'You speak with sufficient boldness!' he said. 'And you do not call this lecturing one?'

6

No,' she said in the same quiet way, and resting her cheek on his shoulder. Neither do you. But you try so hard not to understand your own thoughts sometimes, that I thought I would give you a little help.'

'I hope you will explain your own words next.'

'You remind me,' she said with a little smile which came and went instantly, of some one who said he would give to a certain charity if no one asked him to give. If any one did, he should probably knock the man down and give nothing.'

' And the key to this fable?' said Thornton.

It is hardly needed.

You know the truth - you appreciate it there is not one part of your character but sides, in its own secret persuasions, with right against wrong. And yet when I, or public opinion, or especially your own conscience, says, "this is the way-walk ye in it," - that moment you say, "Nay, but after the desires of my own heart will I walk."

6

She paused a few moments and then went on.

Thornton, I came down to ask one thing of you.'

'You had better not,' he said, but more gently than before, 'according to your statement of the case I shall not grant it. But let me hear — perhaps I am not in a perverse mood at present.'

'You must not be displeased with me-I wanted to ask, to entreat, that you will never again in such circumstances let Hulda know where you have been or what you have been doing. Let her keep all her love and respect for you

all that childish faith and veneration for the Lord's day and his commands, which you sometimes please to call superstition. O Thornton! do not try to ruin more than one of our mother's children!'

Her arms were about his neck and her face laid against his for a moment, and then she was gone; and Thornton sat

alone with his own reflections until the bright wood fire had become but a heap of white ashes, and Trinity church had told off more than one of the small hours.

He roused himself then, and stood up,-that same sweet presence about him yet, his mother's picture before him, and still sounding in his ears the words he had heard repeated to Hulda in the afternoon. He felt their power, even as some persons can appreciate a fine melody while yet they know not one note of music. He took his light and went thoughtfully up stairs, but Rosalie's door arrested him, — he opened it softly and went in.

The moon shone in brilliantly but failed to awaken the quiet sleepers. Both in most quiet rest,-yet Thornton saw and felt a difference. Hulda, with her arm across her sister's neck, was in the very luxuriance of sleep, there were none of night's own visions, there was no lingering one of the day, to disturb her with its influence, - her little train of thought was noiseless as a train could be, and apparently glided through fairy-land. Her sister's slumber was not so deep; and though undisturbed, though the lines of the face were more absolutely quiet than Hulda's, -the mouth had not relaxed its gravity, nor were the eyelashes dry.

Thornton went to bed strangely dissatisfied with himself.

CHAPTER VIII.

Wouldst thou go forth to bless, be sure of thine own ground,
Fix well thy centre first, then draw thy circles round.-TRENCH.

DESPITE the night's fair promise the morning rose upon bad weather; but in the moral atmosphere the change had been the other way, and everything looked brighter.

Though indeed according to one fancy the changes were

much alike, and

66

the sulphurous rifts of passion and woe

Lay deep 'neath a silence pure and smooth,
Like burnt-out craters healed with snow."

'I am so glad it snows!' exclaimed Hulda dancing into

the breakfast room.

"You know

you

said you

would give

me a sleigh-ride, Thornton, as soon as I was well enough and we had some more

She stopped short, the evening before suddenly in her thoughts.

'As soon as we had some more what?' said her brother looking off the paper.

'Rain?'

'I was going to say snow,' said Hulda in a low voice. That is a tremendous word, certainly, it is not surprising that you were afraid to speak it. See here, HuldaI don't want two guardians, and I think on the whole I prefer Rosalie to your little ladyship,—so do you never take it upon you to give me advice. I am not gifted with the Moon's patience, unfortunately.'

'The Moon's patience!' said Hulda. 'I never heard of that before.'

'Why you know,' said Thornton, 'when a little dog once undertook to bark at the Moon, the Moon kept on shining.' 'I don't think you are like the Moon,' said Hulda laughing, but eyeing him a little askance, 'not a bit.'

'Never mind-in future you must deliver your opinions of me and my conduct to Rosalie, and she may repeat what of them she likes. Where is she this morning?'

She was at his side, even as he spoke; with a face so fair, so shadowless except for a little anxious feeling when she first looked at him- a half glance of inquiry as it were -that Thornton was too touched to speak; and taking both

-

her hands he kissed her first on one cheek and then on the other, wishing from his heart that he had ever done more to fill the vacant place of which that black dress spoke. Such a purpose had often been formed, but when it came to the point there was always some hindrance. He had not learned yet how hard it is to obey the second great command while disregarding the first.

'Then do you think you will give me a sleigh-ride, Thornton?' said Hulda, emboldened by something in his face to press her request.

'Half a dozen, if there is snow enough.'

'O that is very good of you!' said Hulda, 'because Alie don't like to go alone. I guess there'll be snow enough-I mean I think there will, I saw one baker's sleigh go by.'

'Which proves nothing concerning my runners,' said Thornton as he seated himself at the breakfast table. 'Bakers have a facility of enjoyment which belongs to few other people.'

'Have they?' said Hulda. 'But here comes another sleigh-I hear the bells.'

1

'And a remarkably slow tinkle they make,' said Thornton, I'll wager something that's a coal man. It's a singular fact that everybody is out of fuel as soon as a storm comes.'

'Yes it is a charcoal man,' said Hulda 'all white and black. And here comes somebody else.'

6

6

Somebody else had better come here,' said her sister, or more than breakfast will get cold.'

'I'll come-' said the child getting down with some reluctance from the chair where she had been kneeling, and taking a last peep out of the window,' but it looks so nice out,—and the people look so funny, just let me see what this one sleigh is-O such a queer one! like a little old