e be ill? The food is excellent and abundant,
and we do everything imaginable for the comfort of our inmates."

"I am sure you do, madame," he replied, bowing. "I shall have the
pleasure of calling upon you again, I hope, before long. As I knew
Miss Britton it is natural for me to take an interest in her niece when
in a foreign land. Your aunt, I suppose, is now in England?" he added
casually to Barbara.

"Yes--staying with us for a day or two; but I hope she will come here
before I go, and we could make an excursion on our way home."

"That would be pleasant for both, I am sure," Mr. Morton replied,
taking a ceremonious leave of Mademoiselle Therese, and a simple,
though warmer one of Barbara. The young man said little in parting,
but as soon as they were in the street he laid his hand hurriedly on
his uncle's arm.

"The girl is ill, uncle, I am sure of it; she is not like the same
person I met before; and that Mademoiselle Therese would drive me crazy
if I weren't feeling up to the mark."

"No doubt; what a tongue the woman has! But what do you want to do,
Denys, for, of course, you have made up your mind to do something?"

Denys frowned. "Of course I don't want to seem interfering, but I
won't say anything at home in case of frightening her mother. But----"
he paused and looked up at his uncle--"do you think it would seem
impertinent to write to the aunt? She might come a little sooner,
perhaps, and, being at Mrs. Britton's, could use her judgment about
telling her or not."

Mr. Morton pondered, his mind not wholly on the girl whom they had just
left; then remembering his nephew he brought his thoughts down to the
present. "I should risk the impertinence if I were you, Denys. But
what about the address?"

"I know the village and the county," Denys said eagerly. "I should
think that would find her. I will do it when I get back."

But it proved more difficult to write than he imagined, and it was some
time before--having succeeded to his satisfaction--he brought the
letter to his uncle for criticism. It ran thus:--

"DEAR MADAM,--I am afraid you may think it rather impertinent on my
part to write to you, but I hope you will forgive that, and my apparent
interference. I am Denys Morton, whom your niece met some time ago on
the way to Dol, and, as my uncle and I were passing this way in
returning from a little tour, we called on Miss Britton, and both
thought her looking ill. The doctor here