ble to
assure Mr. Liscomb that his coming would in no way disturb the usual
serenity of the domestic pond. The trusting friend came. Breakfast
number one was served fifteen minutes after the hour, and for the
first time in ten years Mr. Liscomb was late in arriving at his
office. He had not quite recovered from the chagrin consequent upon
his tardiness when that evening he sat down to dinner at Thaddeus's
house, served an hour and ten minutes late, Ellen having been
summoned by wire to town to buy a pair of shoes for one of her
sister's children, the sister herself suffering from poverty and
toothache.

"I hope you were not delayed seriously this morning, Mr. Liscomb,"
said Bessie, after dinner.

"Oh no, not at all!" returned Liscomb, polite enough to tell an
untruth, although its opposite was also a part of his system.

"Ellen must be more prompt with breakfast," said Thaddeus. "Seven,
sharp, is the hour. Did you speak to her about it?"

"No, but I intend to," answered Bessie. "I'll tell her the first
thing after breakfast to-morrow. I meant to have spoken about it
to-day, but when I got down-stairs she had gone out."

"Was it her day out?"

"No; but her sister is sick, and she was sent for. It was all
right. She left word where she was going with Jane."

"That was very considerate of her," said Liscomb, politely.

"Yes," said Bessie. "Ellen's a splendid woman."

Later on in the evening, about half-past nine, when Mr. Liscomb,
wearied with the excitement of the first irregular day he had known
from boyhood, retired, Thaddeus took occasion to say:

"Bessie, I think you'd better tell Ellen about having breakfast
promptly in the morning to-night, before we go to bed."

"Very well," returned Bessie, "I'll go down now and do it;" and down
she went. In a moment she was back. "The poor thing was so tired,"
she said, "that she went to bed as soon as dinner was cooked, so I
couldn't tell her."

"Why didn't you send up word to her by Jane?"

"Oh, she MUST be asleep by this time!"

"Oh!" said Thaddeus.

It was nine o'clock the next morning when Ellen opened her eyes.
Breakfast had been served a half-hour earlier, Jane and Bessie
having cooked some eggs, which Bessie ate alone, since Thaddeus and
Liscomb were compelled to take the eight-o'clock train to town,
hungry and forlorn. Liscomb was very good-natured about it to
Thaddeus, but his book-keeper had a woful tale to tell of his
employer's irrit