od you are!" I cried, without noticing her sneer;
"tell me all about it, dear; tell me every word she said."

"That will not take long," said Lizzie, quite as unmoved by soft coaxing
as by urgent cursing; "the lady spoke very little to any one, except
indeed to mother, and to Gwenny Carfax; and Gwenny is gone with her, so
that the benefit of that is lost. But she left a letter for 'poor John,'
as in charity she called him. How grand she looked, to be sure, with the
fine clothes on that were come for her!"

"Where is the letter, you utter vixen! Oh, may you have a husband! Who
will thresh it out of you, and starve it, and swear it out of you!"
was the meaning of my imprecation: but Lizzie, not dreaming as yet of
such things, could not understand me, and was rather thankful; therefore
she answered quietly,--

"The letter is in the little cupboard, near the head of Lady Lorna's
bed, where she used to keep the diamond necklace, which we contrived to
get stolen."

Without another word I rushed (so that every board in the house shook)
up to my lost Lorna's room, and tore the little wall-niche open and
espied my treasure. It was as simple, and as homely, and loving, as even
I could wish. Part of it ran as follows,--the other parts it behoves me
not to open out to strangers:--"My own love, and sometime lord,--Take it
not amiss of me, that even without farewell, I go; for I cannot persuade
the men to wait, your return being doubtful. My great-uncle, some grand
lord, is awaiting me at Dunster, having fear of venturing too near this
Exmoor country. I, who have been so lawless always, and the child of
outlaws, am now to atone for this, it seems, by living in a court of
law, and under special surveillance (as they call it, I believe) of
His Majesty's Court of Chancery. My uncle is appointed my guardian and
master; and I must live beneath his care, until I am twenty-one years
old. To me this appears a dreadful thing, and very unjust, and cruel;
for why should I lose my freedom, through heritage of land and gold? I
offered to abandon all if they would only let me go; I went down on my
knees to them, and said I wanted titles not, neither land, nor money;
only to stay where I was, where first I had known happiness. But they
only laughed and called me 'child,' and said I must talk of that to the
King's High Chancellor. Their orders they had, and must obey them; and
Master Stickles was ordered too, to help as the King's Commissioner. A