me a day, my dear."

"Papa, do come soon."

"No doubt I shall come soon." There was a slight tone of anger in his
voice as he answered the last entreaty, and he was evidently in a
hurry with his hat and gloves.

"Papa," said Patience, "of course we shall see you again before you
go to Southampton." The voice of the elder was quite different from
that of the younger daughter; and Sir Thomas, though the tone and
manner of the latter question was injurious to him, hardly dared to
resent it. Yet they were not, as he thought, justified. It now wanted
twelve days to the date of his intended journey, and not more than
three or four times in his life had he been absent from home for
twelve consecutive days.

"Yes, my dear," he said, "I shall be home before that."

"Because, papa, there are things to be thought of."

"What things?"

"Clarissa and I had better have a second bed in our room,--unless you
object."

"You know I don't object. Have I ever objected to anything of the
kind?" He now stood impatient, with his hat in his hand.

"I hardly like to order things without telling you, papa. And there
are a few other articles of furniture needed."

"You can get what you want. Run up to town and go to Barlow's. You
can do that as well as I can."

"But I should have liked to have settled something about our future
way of living before Mary comes," said Patience in a very low voice.

Sir Thomas frowned, and then he answered her very slowly. "There
can be nothing new settled at all. Things will go on as they are at
present. And I hope, Patience, you will do your best to make your
cousin understand and receive favourably the future home which she
will have to inhabit."

"You may be sure, papa, I shall do my best," said Patience;--and then
Sir Thomas went.

He did return to the villa before his journey to Southampton, but
it was only on the eve of that journey. During the interval the two
girls together had twice sought him at his chambers,--a liberty on
their part which, as they well knew, he did not at all approve. "Sir
Thomas is very busy," old Stemm would say, shaking his head, even to
his master's daughters, "and if you wouldn't mind--" Then he would
make a feint as though to close the door, and would go through
various manoeuvres of defence before he would allow the fort to be
stormed. But Clarissa would ridicule old Stemm to his face, and
Patience would not allow herself to be beaten by him. On their second
vi