We know not why, it may have been that these words of affection,
brought suddenly to her mind all that she had loved and lost, or she
might have intuitively divined young Marsden's sentiments towards her,
we only know that her lip quivered, and she trembled and grew pale and
sank helpless upon the sofa.

Her extreme agitation created in her friends no little alarm, but it
soon passed off, and as they could not but observe that any futher
allusion to the matter was annoying to her, the brother and sister
exchanged expressive glances which, being interpreted, signified,
"resolved that the subject be indefinitely postponed." But it was
again mooted on the first occasion of the absence of their guest; Miss
Marsden being the first to bring it under consideration.

"O, it was only fatigue," said her brother, in reply to her various
surmises.

"No, it was not fatigue," she insisted with an arch smile. "It is my
opinion she was laboring under some powerful emotion. I once saw her
almost as much agitated in one of our school exhibitions, in which she
was to act a prominent part; but she went through it splendidly, the
determined little thing."

"O well, it might have been excess of joy at meeting you."

"At meeting _me_, do you say, sir? Now brother, don't try to crawl out
of it, for I have determined to extort the truth from you. Was she not
overjoyed at meeting _you_?"

"Well, then, my dear sister, the truth is, I think not. You must have
noticed she takes special pains to address me as brother, and always
to treat me as such, and you young ladies rarely faint at the sight of
a brother."

"O, but you are only an adopted brother,"--slyly.

"That's all," sighed the young man.

"I think her father's death has changed her a little. She appears more
thoughtful and womanly: don't she brother?"

"I wouldn't be surprised if she were in love," suggested the other.

"O fie, brother, she's not in love, unless it be with you; or she
would have confided it to me. Moreover," she continued, seeing an
incredulous smile playing upon her brother's lips, "you must yourself
admit that it would be a very strange freak for a young lady in love
to voluntarily put the ocean between herself and the object of her
affections. I verily believe our Little Wolf is more anxious if
possible, to start on the tour than we are."

"Yes, so do I," admitted her brother, "and I can't account for it."

"O, it is simply to run away from Mr. Alfred