or, dinner or supper? I suppose all the meals here are
alike. Let us go down and see."

Lois had an excellent appetite.

"This fish is very good, Mrs. Wishart."

"O my dear, it is just fish! You are in a mood to glorify everything. I
am envious of you, Lois."

"But it is really capital; it is so fresh. I don't believe you can get
such blue fish in New York."

"My dear, it is your good appetite. I wish I was as hungry, for
anything, as you are."

"Is it Mrs. Wishart?" asked a lady who sat opposite them at the table.
She spoke politely, with an accent of hope and expectation. Mrs.
Wishart acknowledged the identity.

"I am very happy to meet you. I was afraid I might find absolutely no
one here that I knew. I was saying only the other day--three days ago;
this is Friday, isn't it? yes; it was last Tuesday. I was saying to my
sister after our early dinner--we always have early dinner at home, and
it comes quite natural here--we were sitting together after dinner, and
talking about my coming. I have been meaning to come ever since three
years ago; wanting to make this trip, and never could get away, until
this summer things opened out to let me. I was saying to Lottie I was
afraid I should find nobody here that I could speak to; and when I saw
you, I said to myself, Can that be Mrs. Wishart?--I am so very glad.
You have just come?"

"To-day,"--Mrs. Wishart assented.

"Came by water?"

"From Portsmouth."

"Yes--ha, ha!" said the affable lady. "Of course. You could not well
help it. But from New York?"

"By railway. I had occasion to come by land."

"I prefer it always. In a steamer you never know what will happen to
you. If it's good weather, you may have a pleasant time; but you never
can tell. I took the steamer once to go to Boston--I mean to
Stonington, you know; and the boat was so loaded with freight of some
sort or other that she was as low down in the water as she could be and
be safe; and I didn't think she was safe. And we went so slowly! and
then we had a storm, a regular thunderstorm and squall, and the rain
poured in torrents, and the Sound was rough, and people were sick, and
I was very glad and thankful when we got to Stonington. I thought it
would never be for pleasure that I would take a boat again."

"The Fall River boats are the best."

"I daresay they are, but I hope to be allowed to keep clear of them
all. You had a pleasant morning for the trip over from Portsmouth."

"Very pleasant