ng down by the border, began to grub
at the intruding blades of grass, stopping to put her hand up to her eyes
once in a while, which made her face singularly streaked and muddy.

"What is the matter, Alfaretta?" Helen asked, at last, coldly. She did
not mean to be unkind, but she was troubled at the girl's untruthfulness.

Alfaretta wailed.

"Tell me," Helen said, putting her hand lightly on her shoulder. "Are you
crying because you said what was not true?"

"'T ain't that!" sobbed Alfaretta.

"I wish, then, you would either stop, or go into the house." Helen's
voice was stern, and Alfaretta looked at her with reproachful eyes; then
covering her face with her hands, she rocked backwards and forwards, and
wept without restraint.

"I'm afraid--I'm afraid he's going to take me away from here!"

"Take you away?" Helen said, surprised. "Why? Is the work too hard?"

"No--no ma'am," Alfaretta answered, choking.

"I'll go and see him at once," Helen said.

"Oh, no!" Alfaretta cried, catching her mistress's skirt with grimy
hands, "don't go; 't won't do any good."

"Don't be foolish," Helen remonstrated, smiling; "of course I must speak
to him. If your father thinks there is too much work, he must tell me,
and I will arrange it differently."

She stooped, and took the hem of her cambric gown from between the girl's
fingers, and then went quickly into the house.

She rapped lightly at the study door. "John, I must come in a moment,
please."

She heard a chair pushed back, and John's footstep upon the floor. He
opened the door, and stood looking at her with strange, unseeing eyes.

"Go away, Helen," he said hoarsely, without waiting for her to speak, for
she was dumb with astonishment at his face,--"go away, my darling."

He put out one hand as if to push her back, and closed the door, and she
heard the bolt pushed. She stood a moment staring at the blank of the
locked door. What could it mean? Alfaretta's misery and morals were
forgotten; something troubled John,--she had no thought for anything
else. She turned away as though in a dream, and began absently to take
off her garden hat. John was in some distress. She went up-stairs to her
bedroom, and tried to keep busy with sewing until she could go to him,
but she was almost unconscious of what she did. How long, how very long,
the morning was!

* * * * *

John had looked up from his writing to see Mr. Dean standing in the
doo