sewhere and never had before, a companion.
All my earlier friends were far older than I, or beneath me in
station. Preston was the single exception; and Preston and I were now
widely apart in our sympathies; indeed, always had been. Mr. Thorold
and I talked to each other on a level; we understood each other and
suited each other. I could let out my thoughts to him with a freedom I
never could use with anybody else.

It grieved me a little that I had been forced to come away so abruptly
that I had no chance of letting him know. Courtesy, I thought,
demanded of me that I should have done this; and I could not do it;
and this was a constant subject of regret to me.

At the end of our journey I came back to school. Letters from my
father and mother desired that I would do so, and appointed that I was
to join them abroad next year. My mother had decided that it was best
not to interfere with the regular course of my education; and my
father renewed his promise that I should have any reward I chose to
claim, to comfort me for the delay. So I bent myself to study with new
energies and new hope.

I studied more things than school books that winter. The bits of
political matter I had heard talked over at West Point were by no
means forgotten; and once in a while, when I had time and a chance, I
seized one of the papers from Mme. Ricard's library table and examined
it. And every time I did so, something urged me to do it again. I was
very ignorant. I had no clue to a great deal that was talked of in
these prints: but I could perceive the low threatening growl of coming
ill weather, which seemed to rise on the ear every time I listened.
And a little anxiety began to grow up in my mind. Mme. Ricard, of
course, never spoke on these subjects, and probably did not care about
them. Dr. Sandford was safe in Washington. I once asked Miss Cardigan
what she thought. "There are evil men abroad, dear," she said. "I
don't know what they will be permitted to do."

"Who do you hope will be elected?" I asked.

"I don't vote myself," said Miss Cardigan; "so I do not fash myself
much with what I can't help; but I hope the man will be elected that
will do the right thing."

"And who is that?" I asked. "You do not want slavery to be allowed in
the territories?"

"I? Not I!" said Miss Cardigan. "And if the people want to keep it out
of them, I suppose they will elect Abraham Lincoln. I don't know if he
is the right man or no; but he is on th