t all was to be heard the steady thump, thump,
thump of a stick on the floor from the middle of the room where Peter
sat. Lilac looked round half-frightened at Mr Martin as the noise rose
higher and higher, and made her way quickly to the steps which led from
the platform.

"They won't leave off till you sing again," he said, following her,
"though we settled not to have any encores. You'd better sing the last
verse."

So it turned out that Lilac's song was the most successful performance
of the evening; it was impossible to conceal the fact that it had won
more applause than anything, not even excepting the "Edinburgh
Quadrilles." This was felt to be most unjust, for she had taken no
trouble in preparing it, and was not even properly dressed to receive
such an honour.

"I must own," said Mrs Greenways in a mortified tone, "that I did feel
disgraced to see Lilac standing up there in that old black frock. I
can't think what took hold of the folks to make so much fuss with her.
But there! 'Tain't the best as gets the most praise."

"I declare," added Bella bitterly, "it's a thankless task to get up
anything for the people here. They're so ignorant they don't know
what's what. To think of passing over Charley's recitation and encoring
a silly old song like Lilac's. It's a good thing Mr Busby _didn't_
come, I think--he wouldn't 'a been appreciated."

"'Twasn't only the poor people though," said Agnetta. "I saw those
friends of Mrs Leigh's clapping like anything."

"Ah, well," said Mrs Greenways, "Lilac's parents were greatly respected
in the parish, and that's the reason of it. She hasn't got no cause to
be set up as if it was her singing that pleased 'em." Lilac had indeed
very little opportunity of being "set up." After the first glow of
pleasure in her success had faded, she began to find more reason to be
cast down. Her aunt and cousins were so jealous of the applause she had
gained that they lost no occasion of putting her in what they called her
proper place, of showing her that she was insignificant, a mere nobody;
useless they could not now consider her, but she had to pay dearly for
her short triumph at the concert. The air just now seemed full of sharp
speeches and bitterness, and very often after a day of unkind buffets
she cried herself to sleep, longing for someone to take her part, and
sore at the injustice of it all.

"'Tain't as if I'd wanted to sing," she said to herself. "They made m