eat confidence
in the principle of Carmen; but if she had been married, and her husband
had wrecked an insurance company and appropriated all the surplus
belonging to the policy-holders, I don't believe she would have nagged
him about it.

And yet Margaret loved Henderson with her whole soul. And in this stage
of her progress in the world she showed that she did, though not in the
way Carmen would have showed her love, if she had loved, and if she had
a soul capable of love.

It may have been inferred from Henderson's exhibition of temper that his
case had gone against him. It is true; an injunction had been granted in
the lower court, and public opinion went with the decree, and was in
a great measure satisfied by it. But this fight had really only just
begun; it would go on in the higher courts, with new resources and
infinite devices, which the public would be unable to fathom or follow,
until by-and-by it would come out that a compromise had been made,
and the easy public would not understand that this compromise gave the
looters of the railway substantially all they ever expected to get. The
morning after the granting of the injunction Henderson had been silent
and very much absorbed at breakfast, hardly polite, Margaret thought,
and so inattentive to her remarks that she asked him twice whether they
should accept the Brandon invitation to Christmas. "Christmas! I don't
know. I've got other things to think of than Christmas," he said,
scarcely looking at her, and rising abruptly and going away to his
library.

When the postman brought Margaret's mail there was a letter in it from
her aunt, which she opened leisurely after the other notes had been
glanced through, on the principle that a family letter can wait, or
from the fancy that some have of keeping the letter likely to be most
interesting till the last. But almost the first line enchained her
attention, and as she read, her heart beat faster, and her face became
scarlet. It was very short, and I am able to print it, because all
Margaret's correspondence ultimately came into possession of her aunt:

"BRANDON, December 17th.

"DEAREST MARGARET,--You do not say whether you will come for
Christmas, but we infer from your silence that you will. You know
how pained we shall all be if you do not. Yet I fear the day will
not be as pleasant as we could wish. In fact, we are in a good deal
of trouble. You know, dear, that poor Mrs. Fletcher had n