humanity.

But she was as ignorant about life as ever. The things that now she
wanted to know! About Aunt Anne, for instance. How had she been
affected by Mr. Warlock's death and the disappointment of her
expectations? The Chapel now apparently was to be taken over by
Thurston, who had married Amy Warlock and was full of schemes and
enterprises. Maggie knew that the aunts went now very seldom to Chapel,
and the Inside Saints were apparently in pieces. Was Aunt Anne utterly
broken by all this? She did not seem to be so. She seemed to be very
much as she had been, except that she was in her room now a great deal.
Her health appeared, on the whole, to be better than it had been. And
what was Aunt Elizabeth thinking? And Martha? And Miss Avies? And
Caroline Smith? ...

No, she must get out into the world and discover these things for
herself. She did not know how the way of escape would come, but she was
certain of its arrival.

It arrived, and through her third visitor. Her third visitor was Mrs.
Mark.

When Katherine Mark came in Maggie was writing to Uncle Mathew. She put
aside her writing-pad with a little exclamation of surprise. Mrs. Mark,
the very last person in all the world whom she had expected to see! As
she saw her come in she had a swift intuition that this was Destiny now
that was dealing with her, and that a new scene, involving every sort
of new experience and adventure, was opening before her. More than ever
before she realised how far Katherine Mark was from the world in which
she, Maggie, had during all these months been living. Katherine Mark
was Real--Real in her beautiful quiet clothes, in her assurance, her
ease, the sense that she gave that she knew life and love and business
and all the affairs of men at first hand, not only seen through a mist
of superstition and ignorance, or indeed not seen at all.

"This is what I want," something in Maggie called to her.

"This will make me busy and quiet and sensible--at last--"

When Katherine Mark sat down and took her hand for a moment, smiling at
her in the kindliest way, Maggie felt as though she had known her all
her life.

"Oh! I'm so glad you've come!" she cried spontaneously; and then, as
though she felt she'd gone too far, she blushed and drew back.

But Katherine held her hand fast.

"I wrote," she said, "some weeks ago to you, and your aunt answered the
letter saying you were very ill. Then, as I heard nothing of you, I was
anxious and