s because he thinks
dissipation makes him idle.'

'Then if he is idle I wonder what the rest of the world is!' said
Eveleen. 'I am sure we all ought to stay at home too.'

'I think so,' said Amy. 'I know I shall feel all night as if I was wrong
to be there.'

'I am angry,' said Mrs. Edmonstone; 'and yet I believe it is a great
sacrifice.'

'Yes, mamma; after all our looking forward to it,' said Amy. 'Oh! yes,'
and her voice lost its piteous tone, 'it is a real sacrifice.'

'If he was not a mere boy, I should say a lover's quarrel was at the
bottom of it,' said Eveleen. 'Depend upon it, Laura, it is all your
fault. You only danced once with him at our ball, and all this week you
have played for us, as if it was on purpose to cut him.'

Laura was glad of the darkness, and her mother, who had a particular
dislike to jokes of this sort, went on,--'If it were only ourselves I
should not care, but there are so many who will fancy it caprice, or
worse.'

'The only comfort is,' said Amy, 'that it is Charlie's gain.'

'I hope they will not talk,' said Mrs. Edmonstone. 'But Charlie will
never hold his tongue. He will grow excited, and not sleep all night.'

Poor Mrs. Edmonstone! her trials did not end here, for when she replied
to her husband's inquiry for Guy, Mr. Edmonstone said offence had
already been taken at his absence from the dinner; he would not have had
this happen for fifty pounds; she ought not to have suffered it; but it
was all her nonsense about Charles, and as to not being late, she should
have waited till midnight rather than not have brought him. In short,
he said as much more than he meant, as a man in a pet is apt to say, and
nevertheless Mrs. Edmonstone had to look as amiable and smiling as if
nothing was the matter.

The least untruthful answer she could frame to the inquiries for Sir Guy
Morville was, that young men were apt to be lazy about balls, and
this sufficed for good-natured Mrs. Deane, but Maurice poured out many
exclamations about his ill-behaviour, and Philip contented himself with
the mere fact of his not being there, and made no remark.

Laura turned her eyes anxiously on Philip. They had not met since the
important conversation on Ashen-down, and she found herself looking with
more pride than ever at his tall, noble figure, as if he was more her
own; but the calmness of feeling was gone. She could not meet his eye,
nor see him turn towards her without a start and tremor for which