134 ^^^ i?^^/ Charlotte, 



under her feet was dark and slippery, and when she did 

 at length prepare to follow the butler, slie felt that visiting 

 at grand houses was not as pleasant as it sounded. 



A door into the hall suddenly opened, and there issued 

 from it the hobbling figure of an old man wearing a rusty 

 tall hat down over his ears, and followed by a cadaverous 

 attendant, who was holding an umbrella over the head of 

 his master, like a Siamese courtier. 



" D — n your eyes, James Canavan ! " said Sir Benjamin 

 Dysart, " can't you keep the rain off my new hat, you black- 

 guard ! " Then spying Francie, who was crossing the hall, 

 ' Ho-ho ! That's a fine girl, begad 1 What's she doing in 

 my hall ? " 



" Oh, hush, hush, Sir Benjamin ! " said James Canavan, 

 In tones of shocked propriety. " That is a young lady 

 visitor." 



"Then she's my visitor," retorted Sir Benjamin, striking 

 his ponderous stick on the ground, "and a devilish pretty 

 visitor, too ! I'll drive her out in my carriage to-morrow." 



" You will, Sir Benjamin, you will," answered his hench- 

 man, hurrying the master of the house along towards the 

 hall door ; while Francie, with a new and wholly unexpected 

 terror added to those she had brought with her, followed 

 the butler to the drawing-room. 



It was a large room. Francie felt it to be the largest she 

 had ever been in, as she advanced round a screen, and saw 

 Lady Dysart at an immeasurable distance working at a heap 

 of dingy serge, and behmd her, still further off, the well- 

 curled head of Miss Hope-Drummond just topping the 

 cushion of a low arm-chair. 



" Oh, how do you do," said Lady Dysart, getting up 

 briskly, and dropping as she did so a large pair of scissors 

 and the child's frock at which she had been working. 

 " You are very good to have come over so early." 



The geniality of Lady Dysart's manner might have assured 

 anyone less alarmed than her visitor that there was no ill 

 intention in this remark ; but such discernment was beyond 

 Francie. 



"Miss Mullen told me to be over here by twelve. Lady 

 Dysart," she said abjectly, " and as she had the car ordered 

 for me I didn't like — " 



