iss Verney; and so, thank you
seven times for every pound you were going to give me."

"My dear child, it would be, as I believe I remarked, a pleasure. I have
the greatest dread of long engagements. My own, you know, lasted five
years; and at the end of the time a misunderstanding arose with my
father, who, being a sailor, had a hasty temper. This very
misunderstanding arose over money. I'm sure the person who invented
money was a great curse to the world, and deserved to be pecked at by
that uncomfortable eagle much more than that poor fellow Prometheus, of
whom I was reading in a mythology book that was given to me as a prize
for spelling, and which I came across last night in an old trunk. My
father declared that William.... His name; I believe I've never told you
his name; his name was William Bankes, spelled with an E. Now, my own
being Daisy after the ship which my father commanded at the moment when
my poor mother ... when, in fact, I was born--my own name being Daisy, I
was always a little doubtful as to whether people would laugh at the
conjunction with Bankes, but being spelled with an E, I dare say it
wouldn't have been uncomfortably remarked upon. My father said that
William had deceived him about some money. Well, whatever it was,
William broke off our engagement; and though all his presents were
returned to him and all his letters, the miniature fell out of my hand
when I was wrapping it up. I think I must have been a little upset at
the moment, for I am not usually careless with any kind of ornament. And
when I picked it up it was so cracked that I could scarcely bring myself
to return it, feeling in a way ashamed of my carelessness and also
wishing to keep something of William's by me. I have often blamed myself
for doing this, and no doubt if the incident had occurred now when I am
older, I should have acted more properly. However, at the time I was
only twenty-four; so possibly there was a little excuse for what I did."

Miss Verney stopped and stared out of her window; all about the room the
cats were purring in the sunbeams; Pauline had a dozen plans racing
through her mind for finding William and bringing him back like Peter in
Mrs. Gaskell's book. She was just half-way up the hill with fluttering
heart, longing to see Miss Verney's joy at the return of her William ...
when tea tinkled in and the dream vanished.

When Pauline told Guy about Miss Verney's seven thousand pounds he was
rather annoye