t her post in
the morning; a little crosser and more silent than usual; but the first
was not to be wondered at, and the last was rather a blessing.

Lady Ludlow had been extremely anxious both about Mr. Gray and Harry
Gregson. Kind and thoughtful in any case of illness and accident, she
always was; but somehow, in this, the feeling that she was not quite--what
shall I call it?--"friends" seems hardly the right word to use, as to the
possible feeling between the Countess Ludlow and the little vagabond
messenger, who had only once been in her presence,--that she had hardly
parted from either as she could have wished to do, had death been near,
made her more than usually anxious. Doctor Trevor was not to spare
obtaining the best medical advice the county could afford: whatever he
ordered in the way of diet, was to be prepared under Mrs. Medlicott's own
eye, and sent down from the Hall to the Parsonage. As Mr. Horner had
given somewhat similar directions, in the case of Harry Gregson at least,
there was rather a multiplicity of counsellors and dainties, than any
lack of them. And, the second night, Mr. Horner insisted on taking the
superintendence of the nursing himself, and sat and snored by Harry's
bedside, while the poor, exhausted mother lay by her child,--thinking
that she watched him, but in reality fast asleep, as Miss Galindo told
us; for, distrusting any one's powers of watching and nursing but her
own, she had stolen across the quiet village street in cloak and dressing-
gown, and found Mr. Gray in vain trying to reach the cup of barley-water
which Mr. Horner had placed just beyond his reach.

In consequence of Mr. Gray's illness, we had to have a strange curate to
do duty; a man who dropped his h's, and hurried through the service, and
yet had time enough to stand in my Lady's way, bowing to her as she came
out of church, and so subservient in manner, that I believe that sooner
than remain unnoticed by a countess, he would have preferred being
scolded, or even cuffed. Now I found out, that great as was my lady's
liking and approval of respect, nay, even reverence, being paid to her as
a person of quality,--a sort of tribute to her Order, which she had no
individual right to remit, or, indeed, not to exact,--yet she, being
personally simple, sincere, and holding herself in low esteem, could not
endure anything like the servility of Mr. Crosse, the temporary curate.
She grew absolutely to loathe his perpetual