y, to find that it was morning; and,
unwilling to tempt sleep again, she rose, dressed, and prepared the
kitchen and sitting-room for the breakfast before going upstairs and
softly awakening the two little girls, who, under her tuition, had
become adepts at dressing each other in turns.

Whispering to them to be silent and not awaken their mother, Hazel stole
down again, and went to the door to glance up the street, for it was
nearly half-past seven, and she had a strange fancy that a letter would
arrive that morning.

Sure enough, before another ten minutes had passed away she saw the
postman coming down the last row of houses towards the schools, and she
was about to hurry out and meet him, when, through the wire
window-blind, she caught sight of Mr Chute, who stepped out and
received a letter from the postman, with whom he at once entered into
conversation.

Hazel, from where she stood, could see everything that passed, and that
Chute stretched out his hand to take a large blue envelope from the
postman's hand; but this the rustic official refused to allow. He,
however, permitted the schoolmaster to peruse the address, and that of
another letter, before going on with his delivery.

Hazel felt that he was coming there, and she opened the door in time to
stop his heavy thump.

"Two letters, miss--big 'un and little 'un," he said, thrusting the
missives into her hand. The next moment Hazel was reading the
directions, both of which were to her mother.

One was from Mr Geringer--she knew his hand well. The other, the large
blue envelope, was probably from Percy's employer. She had expected
that letter; and, yes, there were the names on the back, stamped in blue
letters in an oval, "Suthers, Rubley, and Spark."

Hazel stood hesitating as to what course she should pursue. She held in
her hands, she knew, the explanation of Percy's return home. If the
letters contained painful revelations her mother would suffer terribly.
Ought she to let her see the news without reading it first?

Of late all the correspondence had fallen to her share, and Mrs Thorne,
when a letter had arrived, had been in the habit of saying, "Open that,
Hazel, and see what it is."

She hesitated a few minutes, and then opened the blue envelope.

The letter was short and stern in its diction, saying that knowing Mrs
Thorne to be a lady of good family, and one who had suffered much
trouble, the firm had felt it to be their duty to write to