towards her young charge, and laying a strong
injunction upon her to be exceedingly judicious in her treatment of the
eccentric guests whom Gladys had again invited to Bourhill. It was not a
wise epistle at all, though Mrs. Fordyce had regarded it with
complacency as a triumph of diplomatic letter-writing. Instead of
stating plainly the whole facts, and pointing out how desirable it was
that Gladys should not be thrown too much into the company of the girls
from the East End, it threw out certain dark hints, which only mystified
and distressed poor little Miss Peck, and made her anticipate with
apprehension the arrival of the pair. It was a letter which, moreover,
could not possibly do the smallest good, seeing Miss Peck, was not only
far too fond of her young charge to cross her in the slightest whim, but
that she secretly approved of everything she did. Of Mrs. Fordyce, Miss
Peck, was mortally afraid and that very kind-hearted person would have
been amazed had she known how the little spinster, metaphorically
speaking, shrank into herself in her presence. The solemn warning she
had received did not, however, prevent her giving the two girls a warm
welcome when they presented themselves at the house that afternoon.

'Miss Graham has not come home, Christina,' she said fussily, as she
shook hands with them both, 'but I feel sure she will be here to-night.
Meantime I must do what I can to make you comfortable. Come with me to
your old room, Christina, and you shall have tea directly.'

Though she had directed all her remarks to Teen, she did not fail at the
same time to make the keenest scrutiny of her companion, whose
appearance filled the little spinster with wonder. She was certainly a
very handsome girl, and there was nothing forward or offensive in her
manner--nay, rather, she seemed to feel somewhat shy, and kept herself
in the background as much as possible. Acting slightly on Mrs. Fordyce's
advice, Miss Peck gave the girls their tea, with its delightful adjuncts
of new-laid eggs and spring chicken, in her own sitting-room, and she
quite prided herself on her strength of mind as she decided to advise
Gladys to give them their meals by themselves, except on a rare
occasion, when she might wish to give them a treat. After tea, during
which Miss Peck and the little seamstress sustained the conversation
entirely between them, Liz apparently being too shy or too reticent to
utter a word, the two girls went out for a wa