ke as "a great woman." The
children sang their grace and sat down to tea, and Lady Latimer stood
looking on, her countenance changed to a stern gravity; and Bessie,
quite diverted from the active business of the feast, stood looking at
her and feeling sorry. The child's long abstracted gaze ended by drawing
my lady's attention. She spoke to her, and Bessie started out of her
reverie, wide-awake in an instant.

"Is there nothing for you to do, Bessie Fairfax, that you stand musing?
Bring me a chair into the shade of the old walnut tree over yonder. I
have something to say to you. Do you remember what we talked about that
wet morning last winter at my house?"

"Yes, my lady," replied Bessie, and brought the chair with prompt
obedience.

On the occasion alluded to Bessie had been caught in a heavy rain while
riding with the doctor. He had deposited her in Lady Latimer's kitchen,
to be dried and comforted by the housekeeper while he went on his
farther way; and my lady coming into the culinary quarter while Bessie
was there, had given her a delicious cheese-cake from a tin just hot out
of the oven, and had then entered into conversation with her about her
likes and dislikes, concluding with the remark that she had in her the
making of an excellent National School mistress, and ought to be trained
for that special walk in life. Bessie had carried home a report of what
Lady Latimer had said; but neither her father nor mother admired the
suggestion, and it had not been mentioned again. Now, however, being
comfortably seated, my lady revived it in a serious, methodical way,
Bessie standing before her listening and blushing with a confusion that
increased every moment. She was thinking of the letter from Norminster,
but she did not venture yet to arrest Lady Latimer's flow of advice. My
lady did not discern that anything was amiss. She was accustomed to have
her counsels heard with deference. From advice she passed into
exhortation, assuming that Bessie was, of course, destined to some sort
of work for a living--to dressmaking, teaching or service in some
shape--and encouraging her to make advances for her future, that it
might not overtake her unprepared. Lady Latimer had not come into the
Forest until some years after the Reverend Geoffry Fairfax's death, and
she had no knowledge of Bessie's birth, parentage and connections; but
she had a principle against poor women pining in the shadow of gentility
when they could help th