he other thought
differently. After some further discussion, and an ineffectual
attempt to decide which of them should open the matter to Mrs. Todd,
the ladies sallied forth on their errand of peace. They found Mrs.
Todd at home, who received them in her usual agreeable manner.

"How is your little boy?" was the first question, after the first
salutations were over.

"Much better than he was last night, I thank you. Indeed, he is
quite as well as usual."

"What was the matter with him, Mrs. Todd?"

"It is hard to tell. I found him with a high fever, when I got home.
But it subsided in the course of an hour. Children often have such
attacks. They will be quite sick one hour, and apparently well the
next."

"I am very glad to hear that it is nothing serious," said one of the
ladies. "I was afraid it might have been croup, or something as
bad."

There was a pause.

"It seemed a little unfortunate," remarked one of the visitors, "for
it deprived you of an evening's enjoyment."

"Yes, it does appear so, but no doubt it is all right. I suppose you
had a very pleasant time?"

"Oh, yes. Delightful!"

"I hadn't seen half my friends when I was summoned away. Was Mrs.
Williams there?"

"Oh, yes."

"And Mrs. Gray?"

"Yes."

"And Mrs. Elder?"

"Yes."

"I didn't see either of them."

"Not a word about Mrs. Jones," thought the ladies.

A light running conversation, something after this style, was kept
up, with occasional pauses, for half an hour, when one of the
visitors determined to come to the point.

"Mrs. Todd--a-hem!" she said in one of the pauses that always take
place in uninteresting conversation.

The lady's tone of voice had so changed from what it was a few
moments before, that Mrs. Todd looked up at her with surprise. No
less changed was the lady's countenance. Mrs. Todd was mistified.
But she was not long in doubt.

"A-hem! Mrs. Todd, we have come to--to--as friends--mutual
friends--to ask you"--

The lady's voice broke down; but two or three "a-hems!" partially
restored it, and she went on. "To ask why you refused to--to--speak
to Mrs. Jones?"

"Why I refused to speak to Mrs. Jones?" said Mrs. Todd, her cheek
flushing.

"Yes. Mrs. Jones is very much hurt about it, and says she cannot
imagine the reason. It has made her very unhappy. As mutual friends,
we have thought it our duty to try and reconcile matters. It is on
this errand that we have called this morning. Mrs. Jones says she