ich was a safe place where she could
quickly deposit the hat without attracting his attention.

Peyton was doubly annoyed at this enforced delay in his departure,
since Elizabeth might come into the parlor at any time, and the
meeting occur which he had, for a moment, hoped to avoid.

"Would you mind helping me look for it?" said he. "I'm in great haste
to be gone. Do me the kindness, madam, will you not?"

"Why, yes, with pleasure," she answered, thinking bitterly how
transported she would be, in other circumstances, at such an
opportunity of showing her readiness to oblige him.

Her aid consisted in following him about, looking in each place where
he had looked the moment before, and keeping the sought-for object
close behind her.

Suddenly he turned about, with such swiftness that she almost came
into collision with him.

"It must have fallen to the floor," said he.

"Why, yes, we never thought of looking there, did we?" And she
followed him through another tour of the room, turning her averted
head from side to side in pretendedly ranging the floor with her
eyes.

"I know," he said, with the elation of a new conjecture. "It must be
behind something!"

Miss Sally gasped, but in an instant recovered herself sufficiently to
say:

"Of course. It surely _must_ be--behind something."

Harry went and looked behind the spinet, then examined the small
spaces between other objects and the wall. This search was longer than
any he had made before, as some of the pieces of furniture had to be
moved slightly out of position.

Miss Sally felt her proximity to the object of this search becoming
unendurable. She therefore profited by Peyton's present occupation to
conduct pretended endeavors towards the closet west of the fireplace.
She noiselessly opened one of the narrow doors, quickly tossed the hat
inside, closed the door, and turned with ineffable relief towards
Peyton.

To her consternation she found him looking at her.

"What are you doing there?" he asked.

"Why,--looking in this closet," she stammered, guiltily.

"Oh, no, it couldn't be in there," said Peyton, lightly. "But, yes.
One of the servants might have laid it on the shelf." And he made for
the closet.

"Oh, no!"

Miss Sally stood against the closet doors and held out her hands to
ward him off.

"No harm to look," said he, passing around her and putting his hand on
the door.

Miss Sally felt that, by remaining in the position of a physic