es are not strong yet, and she
will never, I fear, be quite girlishly careless and merry, but she is
grave and sweet. She does not shrink from people now, and when I saw her
among other girls at Paris, she seemed older, much deeper, and altogether
superior.'

'Does she think seriously?'

'She thinks and reads, but it is not easy to guess what she thinks, for
she keeps silence, and has happily quite left off arguing with Miss
Charlecote. I believe Cecily has great influence over her, and I think
she will talk a great deal to Miss Fennimore. Robin, do you think we
could have dear Miss Fennimore again?'

'I do not know what Mr. Parsons would say to you. As you know, she told
him that she wanted to do the most useful work he could trust to her, so
he has made her second mistress at the day-school for his tradesmen's
daughters; and what they would do without her I cannot think!'

'She must have very insufficient pay.'

'Yes, but I think she is glad of that, and she had saved a good deal.'

'I give you notice that I shall try hard to get her, if Mr. Crabbe will
only let us be as we were before. Do you think there is any hope for
us?'

'I cannot tell. I suspect that he will not consent to your going home
till Mervyn is married; and Augusta wants very much to have you, for the
season at least.'

'Mervyn and Miss Charlecote both say I ought to see a little of the
London world, and she promises to keep Maria and Bertha till we see our
way. I should not like them to be without me anywhere else. You have
not told me of poor Bevil. You must have seen him often.'

'Yes, he clings very much to me, poor fellow, and is nearly as much cast
down as at first. He has persuaded himself that poor Juliana always
continued what he thought her when they met in their youth. Perhaps she
had the germs of it in her, but I sometimes hardly know which way to look
when he is talking about her, and then I take shame to myself for the
hard judgments I cannot put away even now!'

'Poor Juliana!' said Phoebe, saddened by her own sense that the
difficulties of her present position were lessened by the removal of this
sister. 'And little Elizabeth?'

'She is a nice little thing, and her father hardly lets her out of his
sight. I have sometimes speculated whether he might not ask you to keep
house for him, but last time I saw him, I fancied that he was inclined to
hold aloof from you.'

'I had rather he did not ask us,' said Phoebe