nky,
untidy, and, in his opinion, most disagreeable girl. Still, she had
roused him as he had never yet been roused. She had absolutely awakened
a sort of conscience in him. For the first time in his whole existence,
he carefully considered the question, who is my neighbour?

Certainly Squire Lorrimer was his neighbour. Their estates joined; they
had been good friends from boyhood upward; they had been lads at the
same school, and afterwards men of the same college. His children and
Squire Lorrimer's children loved each other dearly. He had noticed of
late how often Hester's eyes had been red as if with tears. She had been
very good about his own proposed marriage, but she had cried when the
Lorrimers were mentioned Nan had been sulky and disagreeable and
defiant, and this was also on account of the Lorrimers. He was very
sorry for his children, and very sorry also for the Lorrimers, but never
until to-night had it entered into his head to help the Lorrimers out of
their trouble.

He could do so, of course--he was a very rich man--he was also a careful
man, never living up to his large yearly income. By no means extravagant
in his tastes, not specially fond of hoarding money, but being really
possessed of more than his wants required. He lay awake, and thought and
thought, and after an early breakfast the next morning he did adopt
Antonia's suggestion, and went to see his solicitor. From there he wrote
a brief note to Mrs. Bernard Temple.

"As she had not, after all, required his presence in town," he wrote,
"he would not come to see her. He happened to be particularly engaged,
and wanted to return to the Grange that evening."

This letter was delivered at Mrs. Bernard Temple's house by a
Commissionaire. It made that good lady very uneasy, but when Antonia
read it she proceeded to skip up and down the drawing-room with such
energy that two papier-mache tables were knocked over and a valuable
china cup and saucer smashed.

"Don't speak to me, mother," she exclaimed. "I have nothing whatever to
say, only if I don't give vent to my feelings in some sort of exercise I
shall go mad."

The next day or two passed without anything special occurring, but on
the third day Mrs. Bernard Temple received a letter which astonished her
very much.

It was from Sir John, begging of her to come back to the Grange, and
especially asking that Antonia should accompany her.

"Dear old man," murmured Antonia when she received this me