r. Now, dear, you
must lie quiet, and not talk any more. You know you don't want her to
know anything at all about her brother." Whereon Maisie lay silent with
closed eyes, her hand in Gwen's just acknowledging its chance pressures,
while Granny Marrable rose and went to the door; and then Gwen heard her
in an earnest undertone of conversation with Ruth, just alighted from a
vehicle whose horse, considered as a sound, she would have sworn to. It
was the grey mare.

Ruth's visit to her daughter was the first since the extraordinary
discovery of Mrs. Prichard's identity, and she had been very anxious
about her. Nevertheless, its object appeared equable, blooming, and
prosperous on her arrival; very curious to hear details of her
new-found grandmother, and indignant with Dr. Nash for telling her
husband that he was not, on peril of becoming a widower, to allow his
wife to travel over to Strides Cottage to see her. She mixed with this a
sort of resentment against the defection from her post of her real
grandmother--to wit, the one she had grown up under. For the young
woman's wish for her presence had been one of those strong
predispositions very common under her circumstances, and far less
unreasonable than many such. "Granny" had been all-wise and all-powerful
with her from her cradle!

But, in spite of young Maisie's confidence on the subject, her mother
could not resist the misgiving that her expected grandchild was girding
up its insignificant loins to make a dash for existence. Consider its
feelings if it had inherited its great-grandmother's scrupulous
punctuality! Widow Thrale was between two fires--duty to a mother and
duty to a daughter. An instinct led her to choose the former. Her
son-in-law affected to think her nervous; but, after whistling the
halves of several tunes to himself, put his horse in the gig and went
off to fetch the doctor. The story has seen how he caught him just
coming away from Strides.

Ruth had not yet done quite all she could. She could summon someone to
take her place beside her daughter in her absence. Preferably her cousin
Keziah from the Towers. But she must see her and know that she was
available. Tom Kettering, just departing for the Towers, was caught in
time for Ruth to accompany him. On her arrival, finding that Keziah
_was_ available, she arranged to walk with her to Denby's Farm, and then
on to the Cottage. Under six miles, all told!--that was nothing.

But there was no nee