y had lived in the utmost seclusion. The few friends of
her earlier life had drifted away one by one and there was no one to
whom she could turn for help or advice in her hour of need. She must
manage alone somehow, she and faithful black Mandy to whom her mother
was still the "li'l Missy" of long years ago, the "l'il Missy" of the
happy days on the southern plantation.

For two years they had succeeded, but by what sacrifices to themselves
no one would ever know. Many a time they had been reduced almost to the
verge of starvation in order to provide for the blind mother the little
delicacies to which she had been accustomed. Gradually, articles of
furniture disappeared from their accustomed places; costly pieces of
bric-a-brac, rare old china, everything of value which Cecile thought
her mother would not be likely to miss. Cecile's own apartment had been
reduced to four walls, a bare floor, one chair and the bed upon which
she slept. The mother's rooms and Philippe's alone remained untouched.

Then Cecile found employment in the office of one of those new
factories which had recently been erected over there beyond the town.
This step had been the cause of the first disagreement between her
mother and herself.

"Why, Cecile, what do you mean?" the poor mother had gasped in her utter
bewilderment when informed of her daughter's intention. "Surely, I
misunderstood what you just said. Bookkeeper in the office of a
_factory_! Earn your own living! What _are_ you talking about! What
strange jest is this, my dear? For you certainly cannot be in earnest."

"Indeed I am not jesting, mother dear, but am very much in earnest. I
really want to earn money of my own, and shall be so much happier if I
have a regular occupation. And you want me to be happy, do you not?"

"I cannot understand you at all, Cecile. I really cannot. In my youth,
we of the south considered it a disgrace for a young lady to even dream
of earning her living. Your father left us plenty of money. I do not
know just how it was invested, for I never cared to trouble my head
about money matters. I preferred to leave all that to you and the
lawyers. Still, I know my income is quite sufficient for our wants. Even
if we should lose our money, there is Philippe to provide for us. He
would agree with me, I know. He would never, never allow his sister to
work for a living."

Of course Cecile had persisted in her resolution, and it grieved her to
feel that her moth