h with Lady Julia; but then he had
not expected to find Lily Dale at the cottage. Lily herself would
have been quite at her ease, protected by Lady Julia, and somewhat
protected also by her own powers of fence, had it not been that Grace
was there also. But Grace Crawley, from the moment that she had heard
the description of the gentleman who looked out of the window with
his glass in his eye, had by no means been at her ease. Lily saw at
once that she could not be brought to join in any conversation, and
both John and Lady Julia, in their ignorance of the matter in hand,
made matters worse.

"So that was Major Grantly?" said John. "I have heard of him before,
I think. He is a son of the old archdeacon, is he not?"

"I don't know about old archdeacon," said Lady Julia. "The archdeacon
is the son of the old bishop, whom I remember very well. And it is
not so very long since the bishop died, either."

"I wonder what he's doing at Allington," said Johnny.

"I think he knows my uncle," said Lily.

"But he's going to call on your mother, he said." Then Johnny
remembered that the major had said something as to knowing Miss
Crawley, and for the moment he was silent.

"I remember when they talked of making the son a bishop also," said
Lady Julia.

"What;--this same man who is now a major?" said Johnny.

"No, you goose. He is not the son; he is the grandson. They were
going to make the archdeacon a bishop, and I remember hearing that
he was terribly disappointed. He is getting to be an old man now, I
suppose; and yet, dear me, how well I remember his father."

"He didn't look like a bishop's son," said Johnny.

"How does a bishop's son look," Lily asked.

"I suppose he ought to have some sort of clerical tinge about him;
but this fellow had nothing of that kind."

"But then this fellow, as you call him," said Lily, "is only the son
of an archdeacon."

"That accounts for it, I suppose," said Johnny.

But during all this time Grace did not say a word, and Lily perceived
it. Then she bethought herself as to what she had better do. Grace,
she knew, could not be comfortable where she was. Nor, indeed, was
it probable that Grace would be very comfortable in returning home.
There could not be much ease for Grace till the coming meeting
between her and Major Grantly should be over. But it would be better
that Grace should go back to Allington at once; and better also,
perhaps, for Major Grantly that it should be so. "L