hour would
have been sore hard for thee to live through, hadst thou known it
afore."

The parlour door opened, and they saw Roger Hall standing in the
doorway.

"Mistress Pandora!" he said. "Thanks be unto God for all His mercies!"

"Amen!" answered both the girls.

"Methinks, Mr Hall, under God, some thanks be due to you also,"
remarked Pandora, with a smile. "Mine aunt and I had fared ill without
your pots and pans that time you wot of, and mine uncle hath been
ringing your praises in my Father's ears touching your good management
at the cloth-works."

"I did but my duty, Mistress," said Roger, modestly.

"I would we all did the same, Mr Hall, so well as you have done," added
Pandora. "Christie, my sister Gertrude saith she will come and see
thee."

"Oh!" answered Christie, with an intonation of pleasure. "Please,
Mistress Pandora, is she as good as you?"

Both Roger and Pandora laughed.

"How must I answer, Christie?" said the latter. "For, if I say `ay,'
that shall be to own myself to be good; and if `no,' then were it to
speak evil of my sister. She is brighter and cheerier than I, and
loveth laughter and mirth. Most folks judge her to be the fairer and
sweeter of the twain."

"I shall not," said Christie, with a shake of her head; "of that am I
very certain."

Roger privately thought he should not either.

"Well," said Christie, "I do hope any way, _now_, all our troubles be
over! Please, Mistress Pandora, think you not they shall be?"

"My dear little maid!" answered Pandora, laughing.

"Not without we be in Heaven, Christie," replied her Father, "and
methinks we have scarce won thither yet."

Christabel looked extremely disappointed.

"Oh, dear!" she said, "I made sure we should have no more, now Queen
Elizabeth was come in. Must we wait, then, till we get to Heaven,
Father?"

"Wait till we reach Heaven, sweet heart, for the land where we shall no
more say, `I am sick,' either in health or heart. It were not good for
us to walk ever in the plains of ease; we should be yet more apt than we
be to build our nests here, and forget to stretch our wings upward
toward Him who is the first cause and the last end of all hope and
goodness. 'Tis only when we wake up after His likeness, to be with Him
for ever, that we shall be satisfied with it."

THE END.

End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of All's Well, by Emily Sarah Holt

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