h some emotion, he said--"Keep
it--keep it, in Heaven's name!"

And saying this he hastily retired, for he became conscious that
many eyes were upon him; and he felt half ashamed to have betrayed
his weakness before a coarse, unfeeling crowd. For a few moments he
lingered in the street; but his companion not appearing, he went on
his way, musing on the singular adventure he had encountered. The
more distinctly he recalled the young woman's face, the more
strangely familiar did it seem.

About an hour afterwards, as Mr. Edwards sat reading a letter, the
Quaker entered his store.

"Ah, how do you do? I am glad to see you," said the merchant, his
manner more than usually earnest. "Did you see anything more of that
young woman?"

"Yes," replied the Quaker. "I could not leave one like her without
knowing something of her past life and present circumstances. I
think even you will hardly be disposed to regard her as an object
unworthy of interest."

"No, certainly I will not. Her appearance, and the circumstances
under which we found her, are all in her favor."

"But we turned aside from the beaten path. We looked into a by-place
to us; or we would not have discovered her. She was not obtrusive.
She asked no aid; but, with the last few shillings that remained to
her in the world, had gone to recover, if possible, an unredeemed
pledge--the miniature of her mother, on which she had obtained a
small advance of money to buy food and medicine for the dying
original. This is but one of the thousand cases of real distress
that are all around us. We could see them if we did but turn aside
for a moment into ways unfamiliar to our feet."

"Did you learn who she was, and anything of her condition?" asked
Mr. Edwards.

"Oh yes. To do so was but a common dictate of humanity. I would have
felt it as a stain upon my conscience to have left one like her
uncared for in the circumstances under which we found her."

"Did you accompany her home?"

"Yes; I went with her to the place she called her home--a room in
which there was scarcely an article of comfort--and there learned
the history of her past life and present condition. Does thee
remember Belgrave, who carried on a large business in Maiden Lane
some years ago?"

"Very well. But, surely this girl is not Mary Belgrave?"

"Yes. It was Mary Belgrave whom we met at the pawnbroker's sale."

"Mary Belgrave! Can it be possible? I knew the family had become
poor; but not so poor