nely cloud
which had detached itself from a world of romance and had hidden itself
in the heart of a seething city of ugliness and sin.

Surprise temporarily drove from Margaret's mind the object of her
visit; it was not until she was seated in the spacious room which
overlooked the courtyard, and whose front wall consisted of the
_meshrahiyeh_ balcony--it was now Hadassah Ireton's drawing-room--that
she was brought face to face with the unusualness of her visit.

The room was beautifully cool, screened as it was by the delicate
lace-work. _Meshrabiyeh_ was invented to fill two wants--to screen the
windows through which women could look out, without being seen
themselves, and to admit fresh air while it excluded the sun. It is a
substitute for glass in a warm climate.

Margaret would have liked to have sat for a little time longer to
collect her thoughts and to take in the beauty of the room; but that
was not to be; the door opened and her hostess entered.

Of all the beautiful pictures which she had seen since she entered the
inner courtyard of this mediaeval home, Hadassah Ireton was the most
beautiful. She had brought her baby-boy with her; he was just learning
to toddle. A sob rose in Margaret's throat, as she saw the fair-haired
child beside the tall young mother.

Hadassah had greeted her with the conventional "How do you do?"
Margaret answered it as conventionally.

Hadassah lifted her boy up and held him out to Margaret. "This is my
son," she said. "I know he wants to welcome you."

The boy held up his face to be kissed. As he did so, Margaret took him
in her arms and held him close to her breast. Hadassah, who had
brought him to administer to that very want--a woman's empty arms--went
to the balcony and made a pretence of letting in some fresh air and
excluding the shaft of sunlight which was coming from one of the small
oriels that had been left unclosed.

When she turned to her guest, she saw something very like tears in
Margaret's eyes. The child, who did not know the meaning of the word
fear or shyness, was speaking to Margaret as if he had known her all
his short life.

"He has taken you into his elastic heart," Hadassah said. "Because, if
you don't mind me saying so, I think we are rather like one another."

"Oh, no!" Margaret said impulsively, while she blushed. "I'm not like
you!"

Her words were expressive of admiration. Hadassah did not pretend to
misunderstand them; she was