heard her ask my father.

"'There's nothing to be made of him,' my father answered angrily in
his embarrassment, 'for Francis is only a girl. The eldest child,
a son, is dead. I have only this one.'

"'John, John,' cried the lady reproachfully, 'the whole family believed
you had a son, and you have done nothing to undeceive us; and the
old baronet, who pays you the yearly income set apart for his heir,
is expecting to see you both in England very soon. What do you mean
by it? Have you acted like a gentleman?'

"Papa lisped something about 'absolute necessity,' and seemed anxious
to induce her to co-operate in his schemes. The proud lady burst
forth in indignation--

"'Can you imagine I would become a party to such deception?'

"Sir John, to relieve his disappointment, uttered his usual oath,
and ordered me out of the room, as he now perceived I was listening
with all my ears.

"I obeyed very unwillingly, and not until I had spoken to Aunt
Ellen. He ordered me to hold my tongue, and there was a mingling
of menace, of anxiety, and embarrassment in his looks which drove me
sheer out of the room. I had never seen him look like that before. What
passed between them I cannot say. Aunt Ellen afterwards gave me fifty
pounds, and promised to make me that yearly allowance if my conduct
was satisfactory at school. I told her I hated girls' schools, and
that I should much prefer going to England with Dr. Darkins, as had
been promised me.

"'That's out of the question, my child.' More she did not say, and
I knew better than to ask Sir John any questions.

"Well, as you may imagine, I did not stay a whole year at school. In
some things I had the advantage of the eldest girls, whilst in others I
was more stupid and ignorant than the children in the lowest class. My
knitting was always in confusion; I broke my needles in my impatience;
I spoilt the silk and sampler if I had any marking to do; and, to
make matters worse, if any one laughed at me for my awkwardness,
or punished me for my carelessness, I flew into the most violent
passion. I fought with the assistant-mistress, and boxed the ears
of any girl who called me Major Frank--a girl from the same town as
myself having betrayed me. Before I had been there six weeks I ran
away, and had to be taken back by Sir John himself; but six months
later I was dismissed as an untractable, incorrigible creature, whose
conduct was pernicious in its effect on the rest of the school. The