to the other. Rachel had turned quite pale.
John laughed; he knew his mother did not believe him.

"The truth is, mother, I began teasing Rachel about her admirer, Luke.
It made her angry."

"What absurdity!" exclaimed Mrs. Verner testily, to Rachel. "My opinion
is, you would have done well to encourage Luke. He was steady and
respectable; and old Roy must have saved plenty of money."

Rachel burst into tears.

"What now!" cried Mrs. Verner. "Not a word can anybody say to you
lately, Rachel, but you must begin to cry as if you were heart-broken.
What has come to you, child? Is anything the matter with you?"

The tears deepened into long sobs of agony, as though her heart were
indeed broken. She held her handkerchief up to her face, and went
sobbing from the room.

Mrs. Verner gazed after her in very astonishment. "What has taken her?
What can it possibly be?" she uttered. "John, you must know."

"I, mother! I declare to you that I know no more about it than Adam.
Rachel must be going a little crazed."

CHAPTER II.

THE WILLOW POND.

Before the sun had well set, the family at Verner's Pride were
assembling for dinner. Mr. and Mrs. Verner, and John Massingbird:
neither Lionel Verner nor Frederick Massingbird was present. The usual
custom appeared somewhat reversed on this evening: while roving John
would be just as likely to absent himself from dinner as not, his
brother and Lionel Verner nearly always appeared at it. Mr. Verner
looked surprised.

"Where are they?" he cried, as he waited to say grace.

"Mr. Lionel has not come in, sir," replied the butler, Tynn, who was
husband to the housekeeper.

"And Fred has gone out to keep some engagement with Sibylla West," spoke
up Mrs. Verner. "She is going to spend the evening at the Bitterworths,
and Fred promised, I believe, to see her safely thither. He will take
his dinner when he comes in."

Mr. Verner bent his head, said the grace, and the dinner began.

Later--but not much later, for it was scarcely dark yet--Rachel Frost
was leaving the house to pay a visit in the adjoining village, Deerham.
Her position may be at once explained. It was mentioned in the last
chapter that Mr. Verner had had one daughter, who died young. The mother
of Rachel Frost had been this child's nurse, Rachel being an infant at
the same time, so that the child, Rachel Verner, and Rachel Frost--named
after her--had been what is called foster-sisters. It had caused Mr.
Ver