broad-flung over her shoulders
made no common adornment; but her round, healthy face, with its merry
eyes and gleaming teeth, had an honest attractiveness, and her soft
Irish tongue went to the heart. It never occurred to her to apologise
for the disorderly state of things. Having got rid of her fractious
baby--not without a kiss--she took the other child by the hand and with
pride presented "My daughter Leonora"--a name which gave Piers a little
shock of astonishment.

"Sit down, Piers," shouted her husband. "First we'll have tea and talk;
then we'll have talk and tobacco; then we'll have dinner and talk
again, and after that whatever the gods please to send us. My day's
work is done--_ecce signum_!"

He pointed to the slips of manuscript from which he had risen.
Alexander had begun life as a medical student, but never got so far as
a diploma. In many capacities, often humble but never disgraceful, he
had wandered over Broader Britain--drifting at length, as he was bound
to do, into irregular journalism.

"And how's the old man at home?" he asked, whilst Mrs. Otway busied
herself in getting tea. "Piers, it's the sorrow of my life that he
hasn't a good opinion of me. I don't say I deserve it, but, as I live,
I've always meant to And I admire him, Piers. I've written about him;
and I sent him the article, but he didn't acknowledge it. How does he
bear his years, the old Trojan? And how does his wife use him? Ah, that
was a mistake, Piers; that was a mistake. In marriage--and remember
this, Piers, for your time'll come--it must be the best, or none at
all. I acted upon that, though Heaven knows the trials and temptations
I went through. I said to myself--the best or none! And I found her,
Piers; I found her sitting at a cottage door by Enniscorthy, County
Wexford, where for a time I had the honour of acting as tutor to a
young gentleman of promise, cut short, alas!--'the blind Fury with the
abhorred shears!' I wrote an elegy on him, which I'll show you. His
father admired it, had it printed, and gave me twenty pounds, like the
gentleman he was!"

There appeared a handsome tea-service; the only objection to it being
that every piece was chipped or cracked, and not one thoroughly clean.
Leonora, a well-behaved little creature who gave earnest of a striking
face, sat on her mother's lap, watching the visitor and plainly afraid
of him.

"Well," exclaimed Mrs. Otway, "I should never have taken you two for
brothers--no,