rong," said Lady Mary; "the very personification
of youth and health." She sighed softly.

"And beauty," said Peter, excitedly. "Don't leave that out. And a good
sort, through and through, as even _you_ must allow, mother."

He spoke as though he suspected her of begrudging his praise of Sarah,
and she made haste to reply:

"Indeed, she is a good sort, dear little Sarah."

"She is very fond of you," Peter said, in a choking voice. It seemed
to him, in his infatuation, so touching that Sarah should be fond of
any one. "She was dreadfully afraid of hurting your feelings; but yet,
as she said, she was bound to be frank with me."

"Oh, Peter, do tell me what you mean. You are keeping me on thorns,"
said Lady Mary.

She grew red and white by turns. Was John's happiness in sight
already, as well as Peter's?

"It's--it's most awfully hard to tell you," said Peter.

He rose, and leant his elbow against the stone mullion nearest her,
looking down anxiously upon her as he spoke.

"After all I said to you when we first came home, it's awfully hard.
But if you would only understand, you could make it all easy enough."

"I will--I do understand."

But Peter could not make up his mind even now to be explicit.

"You see," he said, "Sarah is--not like other girls."

"Of course not," said his mother.

She controlled her impatience, reminding herself that Peter was very
young, and that he had never been in love before.

"She's a kind of--of queen," said Peter, dreamily. "I only wish you
could have seen what it was in London."

"I can imagine it," said Lady Mary.

"No, you couldn't. I hadn't an idea what she would be there, until
I went to London and saw for myself," said Peter, who measured
everybody's imagination by his own.

"You see," he explained "my position here, which seems so important to
you and the other people round here, and _used_ to seem so important
to me--is--just nothing at all compared to what has been cast at her
feet, as it were, over and over again, for her to pick up if she
chose. And this house," said Peter, glancing round and shaking his
head--"this house, which seems so beautiful to you now it's all done
up, if you'd only _seen_ the houses _she's_ accustomed to staying at.
Tintern Castle, for instance--"

"I was born in a greater house than Tintern Castle, Peter," said Lady
Mary, gently.

"Oh, of course. I'm saying nothing against Ferries," said Peter,
impatiently. "But you only lived th