entered the drawing-room together.
They had not had time to speak when the servant opened the
drawing-room door to announce the visitor. There had been no word
spoken between Mrs. Robarts and Grace about Major Grantly, but the
mother had told the daughter of what she had said to Mrs. Robarts.

"Grace," said the major, "I am so glad I found you!" Then he turned
to Mrs. Robarts with his open hand. "You won't take it uncivil of me
if I say that my visit is not entirely to yourself? I think I may
take upon myself to say that I and Miss Crawley are old friends. May
I not?"

Grace could not answer a word. "Mrs. Crawley told me that you
had known her at Silverbridge," said Mrs. Robarts, driven to say
something, but feeling that she was blundering.

"I came over to Framley yesterday because I heard that she was here.
Am I wrong to come up here to see her?"

"I think she must answer that for herself, Major Grantly."

"Am I wrong, Grace?" Grace thought that he was the finest gentleman
and the noblest lover that had ever shown his devotion to a woman,
and was stirred by a mighty resolve that if it ever should be in her
power to reward him after any fashion, she would pour out the reward
with a very full hand indeed. But what was she to say on the present
moment? "Am I wrong, Grace?" he said, repeating his question with so
much emphasis, that she was positively driven to answer it.

"I do not think you are wrong at all. How can I say you are wrong
when you are so good? If I could be your servant I would serve you.
But I can be nothing to you, because of papa's disgrace. Dear Mrs
Robarts, I cannot stay. You must answer him for me." And having thus
made her speech she escaped from the room.

[Illustration: "Because of Papa's disgrace."]

It may suffice to say further now that the major did not see Grace
again during that visit at Framley.

CHAPTER LVI

The Archdeacon Goes to Framley

[Illustration]

By some of those unseen telegraphic wires which carry news about the
country and make no charge for the conveyance, Archdeacon Grantly
heard that his son the major was at Framley. Now in that itself there
would have been nothing singular. There had been for years much
intimacy between the Lufton family and the Grantly family,--so much
that an alliance between the two houses had once been planned, the
elders having considered it expedient that the young lord should
marry that Griselda who had since mounted higher in