tioned. "I can't tell! Oh, if
mama was only here! What shall I do?"

"I've sent for her!" exclaimed Kittie, with a great sigh of relief. "Kat
has gone now to ask Mr. Phillips, and she'll be here this afternoon, I
know."

Bea looked up for an instant, with a flash of relief in her face, then
burst out again, crying more bitterly than ever, and with a vehemence
that shook her from head to foot.

"What ever can it be?" thought Kittie, flying up stairs, and off to the
garret in desperation; but, pausing as she reached the door, and
shaking with a sudden terror. What if Ernestine should be in there dead,
or something? She shook and hesitated, but finally opened the door, for
Kittie was brave, and looked in!

Nothing seemed to be the matter. The sunshine came warmly in at the
windows and illumined every corner. The little black trunk stood there,
but it was closed, and she did not notice it, though she went all
around, and amazed to find nothing out of place. Over in an unused
corner, for the garret was very large, stood a big dry-goods box that
Mr. Dering had long kept some things packed in, but on the very day
before his sudden death, he had been up in the garret, unnailed the
heavy cover, and gone to the bottom for some things that he wanted, and
then hurried away, intending to repack, and nail up, on his return; but
in the little act, was a mighty working of Providence, or fate; the box
had remained just so, with its dislodged contents at its side, the
little black trunk among them, and the garret having been rarely entered
during the winter, it had not been noticed or remedied.

Kittie, happening to glance that way, saw it; and with a vague idea that
Ernestine might be in the box, went over to it, pushed the little black
trunk nearer, and stood on it to look in; but saw only a confused lot of
things, tumbled up in her father's haste, and so she got down, and left
the garret slowly, more perplexed and bewildered than ever.

As she went down the stairs, she heard, she surely heard an unmistakable
moan, that stopped her in an instant, and made her heart beat fast and
loud with terror; and as she stood and listened, it came again, and it
did not come from the garret either.

As I said, Kittie was brave. Kat would have torn wildly down stairs, and
declared that the house was haunted; but she stood there, quite still,
until that feeble moan came again; then with a thought as quick as
lightning, she cleared the remainin