nd his wife were going for two nights to the rooms at the office,
in the first lull of the bridal invitations, which were infinitely more
awful to Cecily than to Phoebe. After twenty-nine years of quiet
clerical life, Cecily neither understood nor liked the gaieties even of
the county, had very little to say, and, unless her aunt were present,
made Phoebe into a protector, and retired behind her, till Phoebe
sometimes feared that Mervyn would be quite provoked, and remember his
old dread lest Cecily should be too homely and bashful for her position.
Poor dear Cecily! She was as good and kind as possible; but in the
present close intercourse it sometimes would suggest to Phoebe, 'was she
quite as wise as she was good?'

And Miss Fennimore, with still clearer eyes, inwardly decided that,
though religion should above all form the morals, yet the morality of
common sense and judgment should be cultivated with an equal growth.

Cecily returned from London radiant with sisterly congratulation, in a
flutter of delight with Mr. Randolf, and intimating a glorious project in
the background, devised between herself and Mervyn, then guarding against
possible disappointment by declaring it might be all her own fancy.

The meaning of these prognostics appeared the next morning. Mervyn had
been much impressed by Humfrey Randolf's keen business-like appearance
and sensible conversation, as well as by Mr. Currie's opinion of him;
and, always detesting the trouble of his own distillery, it had occurred
to him that to secure an active working partner, and throw his sister's
fortune into the business, would be a most convenient, generous, and
brotherly means of smoothing the course of true love; and Cecily had been
so enchanted at the happiness he would thus confer, that he came to the
Underwood quite elevated with his own kindness.

Phoebe heard his offer with warm thankfulness, but could not answer for
Humfrey.

'He has too much sense not to take a good offer,' said Mervyn,
'otherwise, it is all humbug his pretending to care for you. As to
Robert's folly, have not I given up all that any rational being could
stick at? I tell you, it is the giving up those houses that makes me in
want of capital, so you are bound to make it up to me.'

Mervyn and Phoebe wrote by the same post. 'I will be satisfied with
whatever you decide upon as right,' were Phoebe's words; but she
refrained from expressing any wish. What was the use of a wis