ion. I had better not meet him--and there will be
Mark Rivers and Josiah and--but you will see to all that."

"Certainly, aunt."

"It will be the day after to-morrow. Be sure that the doctor makes no
mistake. There are two trains--he will be on the four o'clock express."
This was in the manner of her Aunt Ann of former days. "Shall I write it
down?"

Leila cried, "No," and fled, laughing.

The next day to Leila's surprise and pleasure her aunt came down to
breakfast and quietly took her place as mistress of the tea-urn. The
talent of common sense as applicable to the lesser social commerce of
life was one of Leila's gifts, and she made no comment on her aunt's
amazing resumption of her old habits. Ann herself felt some inclination
to explain her rapid recovery of health, and said as she took the
long-vacant seat at the breakfast table, "I think, Leila, the doctor's
last tonic has been of use to me--I feel quite like myself." Having thus
anticipated her too sharp-eyed niece's congratulations, Leila's
expression of pleasure came in accordant place. Whereupon they both
smiled across the table, having that delicate appreciation of the needs
of the situation which is rarely at the service of the blundering mind
of man.

The moment of gentle hypocrisy passed, the mistress of Grey Pine took up
her memoranda for the day, and said with some attempt at being just her
usual self, "I shall walk to Westways after breakfast--Pole needs to be
talked to. The meats have been of his worst lately." Then with a glance
at the paper, "Your uncle's books must be dusted; I quite forgot it; I
will set Susan to work this morning."

"But," said Leila, "he does hate that, Aunt Ann. The last time she
succeeded in setting together 'Don Juan' and 'St. Thomas a Kempis.'"

Ann laughed, and said with some of her old sense of humour, "It might do
them both good--dust them yourself."

"I will," said Leila, liking the task.

"And when you ride this afternoon, see Mrs. Lamb. The cook tells me
that she hears of that scamp, her son, as in the army--a nice kind of
soldier." A half-dozen other errands were mentioned, and they parted,
Ann adding, "There is no mail to-day."

They met again at lunch. "It is too bad, Leila, Billy was given the
letters and forgot them and went a-fishing. There was a letter for you
from Mark Rivers about your uncle. Does he think me a child? I read it."

"You read it, Aunt!" exclaimed Leila astonished at this infraction