happen now."

"You need not be, dear; why should you be afraid even of trouble?" said
her brother. "And this is not trouble, but a great blessing for us
all."

But Shenac thought about it a great deal, and, I am afraid, vexed
herself somewhat, too. She did not see Shenac Dhu for a day or two, for
her cousin was away; and it was as well to have a little time to think
about it before she saw her. There came no order out of the confusion,
however, with all her thinking. That they were all to be one family she
knew was Allister's plan, and Hamish approved it, though the brothers
had not exchanged a word about the matter. But this did not seem the
best plan to her, nor did she think it would seem so to her cousin; it
was not best for any of them. She could do far better for her mother,
and Hamish too, living quietly in their present home; and the young
people would be better without them. Of course they must get their
living from the farm, at least partly; but she could do many things to
earn something. She could spin and knit, and she would get a loom and
learn to weave, and little Flora should help her.

"If Allister would only be convinced; but they will think I am vexed
about the house, and I don't think I really cared much about it for
myself--it was for Allister and the rest. Oh, if my mother were only
able to decide it, I do think she would agree with me about it."

She thought and thought till she was weary, and it all came to this:--

"I will wait and see what will happen, and I will trust. Surely nothing
can go wrong when God guides us. At any rate, I shall say nothing to
vex Allister or Shenac; but I wish it was well over."

It was the first visit to Shenac Dhu which, partly from shyness and
partly from some other feeling, she did dread a little; but she need not
have feared it so much. She did not have to put a constraint on herself
to _seem_ glad; for the very first glimpse she caught of Shenac's sweet,
kind face put all her vexed thoughts to flight, and she was really and
truly glad for Allister and for herself too.

She went to her uncle's one night, not at all expecting to see her
cousin; but she had returned sooner than was expected, and when she went
in she found her sitting with her father and Allister. Shenac did not
see her brother, however. She hastily greeted her uncle, and going
straight to her cousin put her arms round her neck and kissed her many
times. Shenac Dhu looked up in