his side, and a moment later the two had disappeared. Effie stood
by the open hall door looking up and down the quiet village street. The
great man of the place had come and gone like a flash. The thing Mrs.
Staunton had longed for, dreamed of, and almost prayed for, had come to
pass at last--her husband was sent for to The Grange. Effie wondered if
Fortune were really turning her wheel, and if, from this date they would
be better off than they had been.

Dorothy Fraser's people lived in the house nearly opposite. From where
Effie stood she could see a light still burning in her friend's window.
The thought of Dorothy raised the girl's state of excitement almost to
fever pitch. She longed to go over and see her friend; she knew she must
not do that, however. She shut the hall door, and went slowly back to
her bedroom. She wanted to sleep, but sleep was far away. She lay
listening during the long hours of the summer night, and heard hour
after hour strike from the church clock close by. Between two and three
in the morning she dropped off into a troubled doze. She awoke in broad
daylight, to start to her feet and see her father standing in the room.

"Get up, Effie," he said. "I want you; dress yourself as quickly as you
can."

There was an expression about his face which prevented Effie's uttering
a word. She scrambled into her clothes--he waited for her on the
landing. When she was dressed he took her hand and went softly down
through the house.

"I do not want your mother to be disturbed," he said. "There is a very
bad case of illness at The Grange."

"What is it, father?" asked Effie.

"Well, I fear that it is a complication of scarlet fever and diphtheria.
The child will have an awful fight for her life, and at the present
moment I am afraid the odds are terribly against her."

"Oh, father, and she is the only child!" said Effie.

"Yes, yes, I know all that; but there is no use in going into sentiment
just now--the thing is to pull her through if possible. Now, look here:
I can send to London, of course, for a nurse, but she would not arrive
for several hours--do you think your friend Miss Fraser would undertake
the case?"

"Yes, I am sure she would," said Effie.

"That's just like you women," said the doctor impatiently; "you jump to
conclusions without knowing anything at all about the matter. The
child's case is horribly infectious. In fact, I shall be surprised if
the illness does not run right throu