orrow?"

"Yes, yes; I am foolish. She shall come, I promise you for her. And,
indeed, I ought to thank you also."

"No, no; I can't expect to be thanked for committing a theft. Good-bye.
I shall send Bella to fetch her. Good-bye."

She took up her hat, gave her friend a kiss, and ran down the steps and
out again, through the wicket by which she had entered. A minute after
the sound of her little carriage rolling away was heard, and Lucia came
back flushed and puzzled.

"But, mamma, you have been overpersuaded. Indeed; I do not want to go."

"I think you do, darling; or will do by-and-by. I have quite changed my
mind, and promised Mrs. Bellairs to send you to her in the morning; so
now all you have to do is to see that your things are ready. Two
toilettes to prepare! What an event for such a country girl as you! Come
in and let us see."

"Mamma, you know my things are all ready. I don't want to go in. I don't
want to go."

"Lucia! Are _you_ changeable, also, then?"

"No, mamma. At least not without cause."

Mrs. Costello smiled, "What is the cause at present?"

Lucia moved impatiently. "Oh, it is so stupid!" she said.

"What is stupid? A picnic?"

"No, people," and she laughed half shyly, half saucily, and blushed
deeper still.

"What people?"

"Bella has been telling me--;"

"Telling you what, my child? That people are stupid?"

Lucia sat down again in her old place, and pulled her mother back into
hers. Then with her two elbows resting on Mrs. Costello's lap, and her
red cheek hidden by her hands, she answered, with a comical sort of
disdain and half-affected anger,

"Mamma, just think. At Mrs. Bellairs' to-day, at dinner, Mr. Percy was
asking questions about what was going to be done to-morrow, and he did
not seem to think, Bella said, that the picnic would be much fun, but he
was greatly amused by the idea of dancing in a half-finished house, and
wanted to know where they would find enough ladies for partners; so Mr.
Bellairs said there were plenty of partners in the neighbourhood, and
pretty ones, too; and Mr. Percy made some speech about being already
quite convinced of the beauty of the Cacouna ladies. You know the kind
of thing a man would say when Mrs. Bellairs and Bella were there. But
Mr. Bellairs told him he had not yet seen a fair specimen; but that
there was a little half Spanish girl here who would show him what beauty
meant. Mamma, was it not dreadfully stupid of him?" And Lucia, in