nd seldom spoke so sharply to her eldest son; but this
request of his was grievous to her.

"I think Grace ought to be considered, too, in the matter," he
returned, somwhat sullenly. "She works harder than any paid governess,
and gets small thanks for her trouble."

"She does her duty," returned Mrs. Drummond, coldly,--she very seldom
praised any of her children,--"but not more than Mattie does hers. You
are prejudiced strongly against your sister, Archie; you are not fair
to her in any way. Mattie is a capital little housekeeper. She is
economical, and full of clever contrivances. It is not as though I
asked you to try Isabel. She is well enough, too, in her way, but a
little flighty, and rather too pretty, perhaps--" but here a laugh
from Archie grated on her ear.

"Too pretty!--what an absurd idea! The girl is passable-looking, and I
will not deny that she has improved lately; but, mother, there is not
one of the girls that can be called pretty except Grace."

Mrs. Drummond winced at her son's outspoken words. The plainness of
her daughters was a sore subject.

She had never understood why her girls were so ordinary-looking. She
had been a handsome girl in her time, and was still a fine-looking
woman. Her husband, too, had had a fair amount of good looks, and,
though he stooped, was still admirable in her eyes. The boys, too,
were thoroughly fine fellows. Fred was decidedly handsome, and so was
Clyde; and as for her favorite Archie, Mrs. Drummond glanced up at him
as he stood beside her.

He certainly looked a model young clergyman. His features were good,
but the lower part of his face was quite hidden by the fair mustache
and the soft silky beard. He had thoughtful gray eyes, which could
look as severe as hers sometimes; and, though his shoulders were
somewhat too sloping, there could be no fault found with his figure.
He was as nice-looking as possible, she thought, and no mother could
have been better satisfied. But why, with the exception of Grace and
Isabel, were her girls so deficient in outward graces? It could not be
denied that they were very ordinary girls. Laura was overgrown and
freckled, and had red hair; Susie was sickly-looking, and so
short-sighted that they feared she would have to take to spectacles;
and Clara was stolid and heavy-looking, one of those thick-set girls
that dress never seems to improve. Dottie had a funny little face; but
one could not judge of her yet. And Mattie,--Mrs. Drum