accept all that you and she
do,' Miss Fennimore answered with a sigh; 'in finding an unchanging
answer to "What is truth?" Yet even your Gospel leaves that question
unanswered.'

'Unanswered to Pilate; but those who are true find the truth; I verily
trust that your eyes will become cleared to find it. Miss Fennimore, you
know that I am unready and weak in argument, and you have often left me
no refuge but my positive conviction; but I can refer you to those who
are strong. If I can help you by carrying your difficulties to others,
or by pointing out books, I should rejoice--'

'You cannot argue--you can only act,' said Miss Fennimore, smiling, as a
message called him away.

The schoolroom had been left undisturbed, for the sisters were otherwise
occupied. By Mr. Fulmort's will, the jewels, excepting certain Mervyn
heirlooms, were to be divided between the daughters, and their two
ladyships thought this the best time for their choice, though as yet they
could not take possession. Phoebe would have given the world that the
sets had been appropriated, so that Mervyn and Mr. Crabbe should not have
had to make her miserable by fighting her battles, insisting on her
choosing, and then overruling her choice as not of sufficiently valuable
articles, while Bertha profited by the lesson in harpy-hood, and regarded
all claimed by the others as so much taken from herself; and poor Maria
clasped on every bracelet one by one, threaded every ring on her fingers,
and caught the same lustre on every diamond, delighting in the grand
exhibition, and in her own share, which by general consent included all
that was clumsy and ill-set. No one had the heart to disturb her, but
Phoebe felt that the poor thing was an eyesore to them all, and was
hardly able to endure Augusta's compliment, 'After all, Phoebe, she is
not so bad; you may make her tolerably presentable for the country.'

Lady Acton patronized Bertha, in opposition to Phoebe; and Sir Bevil was
glad to have one sister to whom he could be good-natured without
molestation. The young lady, heartily weary of the monotony of home, was
much disappointed at the present arrangement; Phoebe had become the
envied elder sister instead of the companion in misfortune, and Juliana
was looked on as the sympathizing friend who would fain have opened the
prison doors that Phoebe closed against her by making all that
disturbance about Maria.

'It is all humbug about Maria,' said Juliana.