.

"Do not be angry," said Rachel. "You made me tell you."

"Oh! I am not angry," said Hetty. "I'm not so stupid as that; but it's
the most disagreeable thing, I ever knew. Can you help seeing these
things, if you try?"

"Yes, I suppose I might," said Rachel. "I never try. It interests me to
see what people are thinking about."

"Humph!" said Hetty, sarcastically. "I should think so. You might make
your fortune as a detective, if you were well enough to go about in the
world."

"If I were that, I should lose the power," replied Rachel. "The doctors
say it is part of the disease."

"Rachel," exclaimed Hetty, vehemently, "I'll never come near you again,
if you don't promise not to use this power of yours upon me. I should
never feel comfortable one minute where you are, if I thought you were
reading my thoughts. Not that I have any special secrets," added Hetty,
with a guilty consciousness; "but I suppose everybody thinks thoughts he
would rather not have read."

"I'll promise you, indeed I will, dear Mrs. Williams," cried Rachel,
much distressed. "I never have read you, except that first day. It
seemed forced upon me then, and to-day too. But I promise you, I will
not do it again."

"I suppose I shouldn't know if you were doing it, unless you told me,"
said Hetty, reflectively.

"I think you would," answered Rachel. "Do I not look peculiarly? My
father tells me that I do."

"Yes, you do," replied Hetty, recollecting that, in each of these
instances, she had been much disturbed by Rachel's look. "I will trust
you, then, seeing that you probably can't deceive me."

When Hetty told the doctor of this, expecting that he would dismiss it
as unworthy of attention, she was much surprised at the interest he
showed in the account. He questioned her closely as to the expression of
Rachel's face, her tones of voice, during the interval.

"And was it true, Hetty?" he asked; "was what she said true? Were you
thinking of something in yourself which troubled you?"

"Yes, I was," said Hetty, in a low voice, fearing that her husband would
ask her what; but he was only studying the incident from professional
curiosity.

"You are sure of that, are you?" he asked.

"Yes, very sure," replied Hetty.

"Extraordinary! 'pon my word extraordinary!" ejaculated the doctor. "I
have read of such cases, but I have never more than half believed them.
I'd give my right hand to cure that girl."

"Your right hand is not yours to giv