to you!" she cried in a low, thrilling voice. "Do
not detain me." And, with a glance to see if Hannah were following her,
she went out.

For an hour I sat crouched on the stair just where she had left me. Then
I went to bed, but I did not sleep a wink that night. You can imagine,
then, my wonder when, with the first glow of the early morning light,
Mary, looking more beautiful than ever, came running up the steps and
into the room where I was, with the letter for Mr. Clavering trembling
in her hand.

"Oh!" I cried in my joy and relief, "didn't she understand me, then?"

The gay look on Mary's face turned to one of reckless scorn. "If you
mean Eleanore, yes. She is duly initiated, Mamma Hubbard. Knows that I
love Mr. Clavering and write to him. I couldn't keep it secret after the
mistake you made last evening; so I did the next best thing, told her
the truth."

"Not that you were about to be married?"

"Certainly not. I don't believe in unnecessary communications."

"And you did not find her as angry as you expected?"

"I will not say that; she was angry enough. And yet," continued Mary,
with a burst of self-scornful penitence, "I will not call Eleanore's
lofty indignation anger. She was grieved, Mamma Hubbard, grieved." And
with a laugh which I believe was rather the result of her own relief
than of any wish to reflect on her cousin, she threw her head on one
side and eyed me with a look which seemed to say, "Do I plague you so
very much, you dear old Mamma Hubbard?"

She did plague me, and I could not conceal it. "And will she not tell
her uncle?" I gasped.

The naive expression on Mary's face quickly changed. "No," said she.

I felt a heavy hand, hot with fever, lifted from my heart. "And we can
still go on?"

She held out the letter for reply.

The plan agreed upon between us for the carrying out of our intentions
was this. At the time appointed, Mary was to excuse herself to her
cousin upon the plea that she had promised to take me to see a friend
in the next town. She was then to enter a buggy previously ordered, and
drive here, where I was to join her. We were then to proceed immediately
to the minister's house in F----, where we had reason to believe we
should find everything prepared for us. But in this plan, simple as it
was, one thing was forgotten, and that was the character of Eleanore's
love for her cousin. That her suspicions would be aroused we did
not doubt; but that she would actually fol