d misery that
her father should be bent on ruining his child, for she could not
understand that all this was simply the instinctive self-indulgence of
a drugged brain and dulled conscience.

She did, however, get a little support and help during a brief stay in
the shooting season at Bridgefield. The Canoness was visiting the
Condamines at the Rectory, and very soon understood all the state of
things, more perhaps from her former nurse than from Ursula. She was
witness to one of those trying scenes, when Nuttie had been forbidding
the misuse of a beautiful elaborate book of nursery rhymes, where Alwyn
thought proper to 'kill' with repeated stabs the old woman of the shoe,
when preparing to beat her progeny.

Just as she was getting the dagger paper-knife out of his little hand,
and was diverting the pout on his swelling lip, his father became aware
of the contest, and immediately the half conquered boy appealed to him.
'Sister naughty. Won't let Wynnie kill cross ugly old woman, beating
poor little children.'

'A fellow feeling! eh, sister? Kill her away, boy, tear her out! Yes,
give her to sister, and tell her that's the way to serve sour females!
I declare, Ursula, she has got something of your expression.'

'Oh Wynnie, Wynnie!' said Nuttie, as he trotted up to her, 'is sister
cross and ugly?' and she opened her arms to him.

'Sister, Wyn's own sister,' said the child affectionately, letting
himself be kissed as he saw her grieved. 'She shan't be ugly old
woman--ugly old woman go in fire.'

So perilously near the flame did he run to burn the old woman that Mr.
Egremont shouted to her that in spite of all that humbug, she was
perfectly careless of the child, although if she had withheld him she
would probably have been blamed for thwarting him.

'Are you quite fair towards Ursula?' the aunt ventured to say when the
girl had gone to dress for walking down with her to the Rectory. 'It is
hard on her, and not good for the boy to upset her authority.'

'Eh? Why, the girl is just a governess manquee, imbued with the spirit
of all those old women who bred her up. A nice life the poor child
would have of it, but for me.'

'I am sure she is devotedly attached to him.'

'Hein! So she thinks; but trust human nature for loving to wreak
discipline on the child who has cut her out.'

'That is scarcely just, Alwyn. She was greatly relieved to be cut out.'

Mr. Egremont laughed at this, and his sister-in-law in