h to speak
of myself. Will you postpone your answer till mamma is here?"

"I cannot do that, Emily. What; receive such a letter as that, and
send no reply to it!"

"I would write a line for you, and explain--"

"No, indeed, Emily. I choose to answer my own letters. I have shewn
you that, because I trust you; but I have fully made up my mind as
to what I shall write. It will have been written and sent before
dinner."

"I think you will be wrong, Nora."

"Why wrong! When I came over here to stay with you, would mamma ever
have thought of directing me not to accept any offer till her consent
had been obtained all the way from the Mandarins? She would never
have dreamed of such a thing."

"Will you ask Aunt Mary?"

"Certainly not. What is Aunt Mary to me? We are here in her house for
a time, under the press of circumstances; but I owe her no obedience.
She told Mr. Stanbury not to come here; and he has not come; and I
shall not ask him to come. I would not willingly bring any one into
Uncle Oliphant's house that he and she do not wish to see. But I will
not admit that either of them have any authority over me."

"Then who has, dearest?"

"Nobody;--except papa and mamma; and they have chosen to leave me to
myself."

Mrs. Trevelyan found it impossible to shake her sister's firmness,
and could herself do nothing, except tell Mrs. Outhouse what was the
state of affairs. When she said that she should do this, there almost
came to be a flow of high words between the two sisters; but at last
Nora assented. "As for knowing, I don't care if all the world knows
it. I shall do nothing in a corner. I don't suppose Aunt Mary will
endeavour to prevent my posting my letter."

Emily at last went to seek Mrs. Outhouse, and Nora at once sat
down to her desk. Neither of the sisters felt at all sure that Mrs.
Outhouse would not attempt to stop the emission of the letter from
her house; but, as it happened, she was out, and did not return till
Nora had come back from her journey to the neighbouring post-office.
She would trust her letter, when written, to no hands but her
own; and as she herself dropped it into the safe custody of the
Postmaster-General, it also shall be revealed to the public:--

Parsonage, St. Diddulph's, January, 186--.

DEAR HUGH,

For I suppose I may as well write to you in that way now.
I have been made so happy by your affectionate letter. Is
not that a candid confession for a young l