come back. At all events," she continued, seeing that Miss Lillycrop
still hesitated, "come for a night or two."

"But--"

"Come now, Lilly"--thus she styled her friend--"but give me no _buts_.
You know that you've no good reason for refusing."

"Indeed I have," pleaded Miss Lillycrop; "my little servant--"

"What, the infant who opened the door to me?"

"Yes, Tottie Bones; she is obliged to stay at nights with me just now,
owing to her mother, poor thing, being under the necessity of shutting
up her house while she goes to look after a drunken husband, who has
forsaken her."

"Hah!" exclaimed Miss Stivergill, giving a nervous pull at her left
glove, which produced a wide rent between the wrist and the thumb. "I
wonder why women marry!"

"Don't you think it's a sort of--of--unavoidable necessity?" suggested
Miss Lillycrop, with a faint smile.

"Not at all, my dear, not at all. I have avoided it. So have you. If
I had my way, I'd put a stop to marriage altogether, and bring this
miserable world to an abrupt close.--But little Bones is no difficulty:
we'll take her along with us."

"But, dear Maria--"

"Well, what further objections, Lilly?"

"Tottie has charge of a baby, and--"

"What! one baby in charge of another?"

"Indeed it is too true; and, you know, you couldn't stand a baby."

"Couldn't I?" said Miss Stivergill sharply. "How d'you know that? Let
me see it."

Tottie being summoned with the baby, entered the room staggering with
the rotund mountain of good-natured self-will entirely concealing her
person, with exception of her feet and the pretty little coal-dusted
arms with which she clasped it to her heaving breast.

"Ha! I suppose little Bones is behind it," said Miss Stivergill.--"Set
the baby down, child, and let me see you."

Tottie obeyed. The baby, true to his principles, refused to stand. He
sat down and stared at those around him in jovial defiance.

"What is your age, little Bones?"

"Just turned six, m'm," replied Tottie, with a courtesy, which Miss
Lillycrop had taught her with great pains.

"You're sixty-six, at the least, compared with male creatures of the
same age," observed her interrogator.

"Thank you, m'm," replied Tottie, with another dip.

"Have you a bonnet and shawl, little Bones?"

Tottie, in a state of considerable surprise, replied that she had.

"Go and put 'em on then, and get that thing also ready to go out."

Miss Stivergill pointed to the