what clumsy. Petrea
had great desire to unform it, particularly for the approaching
festivities.

"What _have_ you done to your nose? What is amiss with your nose?" were
the questions which assailed Petrea on all sides, as she came down to
breakfast on the morning of the journey.

Half laughing and half crying, Petrea related how she had made use of
some innocent machinery during the night, by which she had hoped
somewhat to alter the form of this offending feature, the consequence of
which had unfortunately been the fixing a fiery red saddle across it,
and a considerable swelling beside.

"Don't cry, my dear girl," said her mother, bathing it with
oatmeal-water, "it will only inflame your nose the more."

"Ah," burst forth poor Petrea, "anybody is really unfortunate who has
such a nose as mine! What in the world can they do with it? They must go
into a convent."

"It is very much better," said the mother, "to do as one of my friends
did, who had a very large nose, much larger than yours, Petrea."

"Ah, what did she do?" asked Petrea, eagerly.

"She made herself so beloved, that her nose was beloved too," said her
mother. "Her friends declared that they saw nothing so gladly as her
nose as it came in at the door, and that without it she would have been
nothing."

Petrea laughed, and looked quite cheerful. "Ah," said she, "if my nose
can but be beloved, I shall be quite reconciled to it."

"You must endeavour to grow above it!" said the good, prudent mother,
jestingly, but significantly.

CHAPTER VIII.

THE DAY OF THE JOURNEY.

On the morning of the important day all was in lively motion. The
Assessor sent Eva a large bouquet of most remarkably beautiful natural
flowers, which she immediately divided among her sisters. The Judge
himself, in a frenzy of activity, packed the things of his wife and
daughters, and protested that nobody could do it better than he, and
that nobody could make so many things go into one box as he could. The
last was willingly conceded to him, but a little demur arose as to the
excellency of the packing. The ladies asserted that he rumpled their
dresses; the Judge asserted that there was no danger on that account,
that everything would be found remarkably smooth, and stood zealous and
warm in his shirt-sleeves beside the travelling-case, grumbling a little
at every fresh dress that was handed to him, and then exclaiming
immediately afterwards, "Have you more yet, girls? I