.

Frances felt faintly amused. He talked to her as he might have done to
Corona, and seemed utterly oblivious of the fact that her profile was
classic and her eyes delicious. His indifference piqued Frances a
little in spite of her murdered heart. Well, if there was anything she
could do she might as well do it, she told him briefly, and he, with
equal brevity, gave her directions for finding some old lady who lived
on the Elm Creek road and to whom Corona had read tracts.

"Tracts are a mild dissipation of Aunt Clorinda's," he said. "She
fairly revels in them. She is half blind and has missed Corona very
much."

There were other matters also--a dozen or so of factory girls who
needed to be looked after and a family of ragged children to be
clothed. Frances, in some dismay, found herself pledged to help in all
directions, and then ways and means had to be discussed. The long, wet
road, sprinkled with houses, from whose windows people were peering to
see "what girl the minister was driving," seemed very short. Frances
did not know it, but Elliott Sherwood drove a full mile out of his
way that morning to take her home, and risked being late for a very
important appointment--from which it may be inferred that he was not
quite so blind to the beautiful as he had seemed.

Frances went through the rain that afternoon and read tracts to Aunt
Clorinda. She was so dreadfully tired that night that she forgot to
cry, and slept well and soundly.

In the morning she went to church for the first time since coming to
Windy Meadows. It did not seem civil not to go to hear a man preach
when she had gone slumming with his sister and expected to assist him
with his difficulties over factory girls. She was surprised at Elliott
Sherwood's sermon, and mentally wondered why such a man had been
allowed to remain for four years in a little country pulpit. Later on
Aunt Eleanor told her it was for his health.

"He was not strong when he left college, so he came here. But he is as
well as ever now, and I expect he will soon be gobbled up by some of
your city churches. He preached in Castle Street church last winter,
and I believe they were delighted with him."

This was all of a month later. During that time Frances thought that
she must have been re-created, so far was her old self left behind.
She seldom had an idle moment; when she had, she spent it with Corona.
The two girls had become close friends, loving each other with the
inten