y
shortly, the worst terror of her life would come to pass and she would
be dragged off to prison. Still, she could not let kind old Mrs.
Winter's best clock be broken on her account. She unlocked the parlour
door and flung it wide open.

Out bounded Miss Block, her face scarlet with rage, the pink hat cocked
unbecomingly over one ear. "You miserable, impertinent, thieving
little wretch!" she stammered, literally sobbing with fury. "I'll soon
teach--"

"My dear child! What has happened, and what are you doing?"
interrupted a calm voice.

Unnoticed by the two angry girls the street door had opened, and there
stood Miss Thompson. When things came to be explained afterwards there
was nothing very strange about her arriving at that moment, but to
Madge her appearance seemed so opportune as to be little short of
miraculous. In point of fact Miss Thompson had left the linen-draper's
shortly before, and on looking up and down the street for her pupil had
seen her face peeping out of Mrs. Winter's door. Madge at the time had
been so occupied in watching for Mrs. Winter that she had no thoughts
to spare for anyone else, and never noticed Miss Thompson until she
heard her voice.

Miss Block was not at the best of times a well-bred girl, and now, her
face distorted with passion she seemed ready, positively, to fly at
Madge. Anything like opposition or argument would have produced a
regular torrent of rude words and foolish accusations. But Miss
Thompson did not give her any chance of being insulting; she was so
calm herself, and so full of dignified apologies for Madge's behaviour,
that before long the angry girl left off sobbing hysterically and began
to listen to reason.

When Miss Block had heard the whole story she felt distinctly
uncomfortable. Captain West was exceedingly well known in the
neighbourhood, and the last thing Miss Block would have wished to do
was to call his daughter a thief; but how could she guess that a
plainly-dressed little girl in a small shop belonged to anyone of
importance? Miss Block was sufficiently vulgar to have different
manners for different classes of society. It confused her very much to
find that she had treated Captain West's daughter as if she were Mrs.
Winter's grandchild, or even someone poorer.

"Well, I'm very sorry for all that's happened," she said awkwardly.
"It's been a mistake, and I hope Captain West won't think any more
about it." Miss Thompson politely ass