the
one that had been given them, but he suspected that there must be some
other. He did his best, however, to make pleasant conversation; and
Roberta, who began to have a tender feeling for the little lady at the
head of the table, who, she could easily see, had been placed in an
unpleasant position, seconded his efforts with such effect that, when
the little party had concluded their dinner with a course of hot pound
cake and cream sauce, they were chatting together quite sociably.

In about ten minutes after they had all gone into the parlor, Miss Annie
excused herself, and presently returned with a message to Miss March
that Mrs Keswick would be very glad to see her in another room. This was
a very natural message from an elderly lady, who was not well, but
Roberta arose and walked out of the parlor with a feeling as if she
were about to enter the cage of an erratic tigress. But she met with no
such creature. She saw in the back room, into which she was ushered, a
small old woman, dressed very plainly, who came forward to meet her,
extending both hands, into one of which Roberta placed one of her own.

"I may as well say at once, Roberta March," said Mrs Keswick, "that the
reason I didn't come to meet you when you first arrived was, that I
couldn't get over, all of a sudden, the feelings I have had against your
family for so many years."

"Why then, Mrs Keswick," said Roberta, very coldly, "did you ask me to
come?"

"Because I wanted you to come," said Mrs Keswick, "and because I thought
I was stronger than I turned out to be; but you must make allowances for
the stiffness which gets into old people's dispositions as well as their
backs. I want you to understand, however, that I meant all I said in
that letter, and I am very glad to see you. If anything in my conduct
has seemed to you out of the way, you must set it down to the fact that
I was making a very sudden turn, and starting out on a new track in
which I hope we shall all keep for the rest of our lives."

Roberta could not help thinking that the sudden turn in the new track
began with the visit of her uncle to this house, and that the old lady
need not have inflicted upon her the disagreeable necessity of
witnessing a hostess taking a very repulsive cold plunge; but all she
said was that she hoped the families would now live together in friendly
relations; and that she was sure that, if this were to be, it would give
her uncle a great deal of pleasure.