? We have no reason for doubting that he was
a most excellent postman," she went on, a twinkle in her eye; "punctual,
diligent, and altogether praiseworthy."

"Then you object to nothing?" cried the baroness with extraordinary
bitterness. "You draw the line nowhere? All the traditions and
prejudices of gentlefolk are supremely indifferent to you?"

"Oh, I object to a great many things. I would have liked it better if
the postman had really been the literary luminary poor Emilie said he
was--for her sake, and my sake, and your sakes. And I don't like
untruths, and never shall. But I do like Emilie, and I forgive it all."

"Then she is to remain here?"

"Yes, as long as she wants to. And do, _do_ try to see how good she is,
and how much there is to love in her. You have done her a real service,"
Anna added, smiling, "for now she won't have it on her mind any more,
and will be able to be really happy."

The baroness gathered up her work and rose. Frau von Treumann looked at
her nervously, and rose too.

"Then----" began the baroness, pale with outraged pride and propriety.

"Then really----" began Frau von Treumann more faintly, but feeling
bound in this matter to follow her example. After all, they could always
allow themselves to be persuaded to change their minds again.

Anna got up too, and they stood facing each other. Something awful was
going to happen, she felt, but what? Were they, she wondered, both going
to give her notice?

The baroness, drawn up to her full height, looked at her, opened her
lips to complete her sentence, and shut them again. She was exceedingly
agitated, and held her little thin, claw-like hands tightly together to
hide how they were shaking. All she had left in the world was the pride
of being an Elmreich and a baroness; and as, with the relentless years,
she had grown poorer, plainer, more insignificant, so had this pride
increased and strengthened, until, together with her passionate
propriety and horror of everything in the least doubtful in the way of
reputations, it had come to be the very mainspring of her being.
"Then----" she began again, with a great effort; for she remembered how
there had actually been no food sometimes when she was hungry, and no
fire when she was cold, and no doctor when she was sick, and how severe
weather had seemed to set in invariably at those times when she had
least money, making her first so much hungrier than usual, and
afterwards so much more s