s and plates.

"Tell me all about it," said Francis, who was now in high good humor.
"It sounds quite like the beginning of a romance."

"There's no romance about it that I can see," said Mrs. Trent, grimly.
"Your brother is engaged to Miss Kenyon--a nice, pretty young lady:
rich, too, I hear."

"Yes, indeed! As you and I are going to find out by and by, old lady,"
and he chuckled to himself at the thought of his prospective wealth.

"And he ought to be content with that. Instead of which, he's never out
of our place; and when he's there he never seems to take his eyes off
Miss Lesley. Playing the piano while she sings, reading to her,
whispering, sitting into her pocket, so to speak. I can't think what
he's about, nor other people neither."

"What does Miss Kenyon say?" asked Francis, with sudden sharpness. For
it occurred to him that if that match were broken off he would not get
his two thousand pounds on Oliver's wedding-day.

"She doesn't seem to notice much. Once or twice lately I've seen her
look at them in a thoughtful, puzzled kind of way, as if something had
set her thinking. She looks at Miss Lesley as if she could not quite
make her out--though the two have been friends ever since Miss Lesley
came home from school."

"And the girl herself?" said Francis, with considerable and increasing
interest. "What does she do?"

"She looks troubled and puzzled, but I don't think she understands.
She's as innocent as a baby," said Mrs. Trent, with compassion in her
tone.

"I wonder what he's doing it for," soliloquized Francis. "He can't marry
her."

Mary Trent paused for a moment in her housewifely occupations. "Why
_can_ he not?"

"Because----well, I may as well tell you as not I've never mentioned
it--I don't know why exactly--but I'll tell you now, Mary. A few weeks
ago, when we were so down on our luck, you know--just before you began
to work again--I met Oliver in Russell Square, and told him what I
wanted and what I thought of him. I brought him to terms, I can tell
you! He had just got himself engaged to Miss Kenyon; and she has twenty
thousand pounds besides her profession; and he promised me two thousand
down on his wedding-day. What do you say to that? And within six months,
too! And if he doesn't keep his word, I shall not hold my tongue about
the one or two little secrets of his that I possess--do you see?"

"Perhaps," said Mrs. Trent, slowly, "he thinks he could manage to pay
you the money e