ouse constantly on the empty evenings.

Lois queried again and again what brought him there? Madge it must be;
it could hardly be the society of his old friend Mrs. Wishart. It was
not her society that he sought. He was general in his attentions, to be
sure; but he played chess with Madge, he accompanied Madge's singing,
he helped Madge in her French reading and Italian pronunciation, and
took Madge out. He did none of these things with Lois. Truly Lois had
been asked, and would not go out either alone or with her sister in Mr.
Dillwyn's carriage or in Mr. Dillwyn's convoy. And she had been
challenged, and invariably declined, to sing with them; and she did not
want to learn the game of chess, and took no help from anybody in her
studies. Indeed, Lois kept herself persistently in the background, and
refused to accompany her friends to any sort of parties; and at home,
though she must sit down-stairs in the evening, she withdrew from the
conversation as much as she could.

"My dear," said Mrs. Wishart, much vexed at last, "you do not think it
is _wicked_ to go into society, I hope?"

"Not for you. I do not think it would be right for me."

"Why not, pray? Is this Puritanism?"

"Not at all," said Lois, smiling.

"She is a regular Puritan, though," said Madge.

"It isn't that," Lois repeated. "I like going out among people as well
as Madge does. I am afraid I might like it too well."

"What do you mean by 'too well'?" demanded her protectress, a little
angrily.

"More than would be good for me. Just think--in a little while I must
go back to Esterbrooke and teaching; don't you see, I had better not
get myself entangled with what would unfit me for my work?"

"Nonsense! That is not your work."

"You are _never_ going back to that horrid place!" exclaimed Madge.

But they both knew, from the manner of Lois's quiet silence, that their
positions would not be maintained.

"There's the more reason, if you are going back there by and by, why
you should take all the advantage you can of the present," Mrs. Wishart
added. Lois gave her a sweet, grateful look, acknowledging her
tenderness, but not granting her conclusions. She got away from the
subject as soon as she could. The question of the sisters' return home
had already been broached by Lois; received, however, by Mrs. Wishart
with such contempt, and by Madge with such utter disfavour, that Lois
found the point could not be carried; at least not at that time; and