the
conversation with all a woman's curiosity about the minutest matters.
She lay with her face turned toward him and her eyes meeting his, until
the course of her inquiries drew an answer from him, which informed her
of his fortunate discovery in relation to Mr. Rambert's library, and of
the prospect it afforded of his resuming his labors the next day.

When he mentioned this circumstance, she suddenly turned her head on the
pillow so that her face was hidden from him, and he could see through
the counterpane that the shivering, which he had observed when her
illness had seized her in the morning, had returned again.

"I am only cold," she said, in a hurried way, with her face under the
clothes.

He rang for the maid, and had a fresh covering placed on the bed.
Observing that she seemed unwilling to be disturbed, he did not remove
the clothes from her face when he wished her goodnight, but pressed his
lips on her head, and patted it gently with his hand. She shrank at
the touch as if it hurt her, light as it was, and he went downstairs,
resolved to send for the doctor again if she did not get to rest on
being left quiet. In less than half an hour afterward the maid came down
and relieved his anxiety by reporting that her mistress was asleep.

The next morning he found her in better spirits. Her eyes, she said,
felt too weak to bear the light, so she kept the bedroom darkened. But
in other respects she had little to complain of.

After answering her husband's first inquiries, she questioned him about
his plans for the day. He had letters to write which would occupy him
until twelve o'clock. At two o'clock he expected the volume of the
_Times_ to arrive, and he should then devote the rest of the afternoon
to his work. After hearing what his plans were, Mrs. Carling suggested
that he should ride out after he had done his letters, so as to get some
exercise at the fine part of the day; and she then reminded him that a
longer time than usual had elapsed since he had been to see a certain
old pensioner of his, who had nursed him as a child, and who was now
bedridden, in a village at some distance, called Tringweighton. Although
the rector saw no immediate necessity for making this charitable
visit, the more especially as the ride to the village and back, and the
intermediate time devoted to gossip, would occupy at least two hours and
a half, he assented to his wife's proposal, perceiving that she urged it
with unusual