ot up
and bustled about; she poked the fire and shifted the candles, spoke
a few words to Dr. Grantly, whispered something to her son, patted
Lucy on the cheek, told Fanny, who was a musician, that they would
have a little music, and ended by putting her two hands on Griselda's
shoulders and telling her that the fit of her frock was perfect. For
Lady Lufton, though she did dress old herself, as Lucy had said,
delighted to see those around her neat and pretty, jaunty and
graceful.

"Dear Lady Lufton!" said Griselda, putting up her hand so as to
press the end of her ladyship's fingers. It was the first piece of
animation she had shown, and Lucy Robarts watched it all. And then
there was music. Lucy neither played nor sang; Fanny did both, and
for an amateur did both well. Griselda did not sing, but she played;
and did so in a manner that showed that neither her own labour nor
her father's money had been spared in her instruction. Lord Lufton
sang also, a little, and Captain Culpepper a very little; so that
they got up a concert among them. In the meantime the doctor and Mark
stood talking together on the rug before the fire; the two mothers
sat contented, watching the billings and the cooings of their
offspring--and Lucy sat alone, turning over the leaves of a book of
pictures. She made up her mind fully, then and there, that she was
quite unfitted by disposition for such work as this. She cared for
no one, and no one cared for her. Well, she must go through with it
now; but another time she would know better. With her own book and a
fireside she never felt herself to be miserable as she was now. She
had turned her back to the music for she was sick of seeing Lord
Lufton watch the artistic motion of Miss Grantly's fingers, and
was sitting at a small table as far away from the piano as a long
room would permit, when she was suddenly roused from a reverie of
self-reproach by a voice close behind her: "Miss Robarts," said
the voice, "why have you cut us all?" and Lucy felt that, though
she heard the words plainly, nobody else did. Lord Lufton was now
speaking to her as he had before spoken to Miss Grantly.

"I don't play, my lord," said Lucy, "nor yet sing."

"That would have made your company so much more valuable to us, for
we are terribly badly off for listeners. Perhaps you don't like
music?"

"I do like it,--sometimes very much."

"And when are the sometimes? But we shall find it all out in time. We
shall have u