the mortgage, soon called upon the widow, informing her
that the time had already expired, and, unless she found herself able to
meet the claim, her dwelling was legally his property; but, as a great
favor, he granted her permission to occupy the house till she could make
some arrangement concerning the future, giving her, however, distinctly
to understand, that he wished to take possession as soon as she could
find another home. Mrs. Ashton thanked him for the consideration he had
shown her, little as it was, telling him she would as soon as possible
seek another home, however humble it might be; and Mr. Tompkins departed
with a polite bow and a bland smile upon his countenance, well pleased
that he had got the matter settled with so little difficulty. I presume
he never once paused to think of the grief-stricken widow and her
fatherless daughter, whom he was about to render homeless. Money had so
long been his idol that tender and benevolent emotions were well-nigh
extinguished in his world-hardened heart. For a long time after Mr.
Tompkins left the house Mrs. Ashton remained in deep thought. There are,
dear reader, dark periods in the lives of most of us, when, turn which
way we will, we find ourselves surrounded, as by a thick hedge, with
difficulties and troubles from which we see no escape.

At such periods it is good for us to call to mind the fact, that the
darkest cloud often has a silver lining, and that if we discharged, to
the best of our ability, our duties for the time being, the cloud,
sooner or later, will be reversed, and display its bright side to our
troubled view. The time had now arrived, when Mrs. Ashton must come to
some decision regarding the future. She had no friends to whom she could
turn for aid or counsel in this season of trial. When quite young she
had emigrated from England with her parents and one sister, and settled
in Eastern Canada. About the time of her marriage and removal to W. her
parents, with her sister, removed to one of the Western States; and it
may be the knowledge that she must rely solely upon herself enabled her
to meet her trials with more fortitude than might have been expected.
Some fifty miles from W. was the large and thriving village of Rockford,
and thither Mrs. Ashton at length decided to remove. One reason for
this decision was the excellent institution for the education of young
ladies, which was there located. She was very anxious that her daughter
should obtai