and a walk at that early hour was of itself a pleasure to
Celestina. She had not been inside the Rectory since the Vane family had
replaced old Dr. Bunton and his wife, and scarcely was the door open
when the little girl noticed a difference. The old, heavy, stuffy
furniture was gone, and though it was still plain, the house looked
lighter and brighter. The schoolroom was a nice little room looking
towards the sea; there was a good strong table with a black oil-cloth
cover and four hair-seated chairs, such as were much used at that time.
But there were two or three pretty pictures on the walls, and a cottage
piano, and in the bookcase were a few bright-coloured tempting volumes
as well as the graver-looking school-books. Everything was very neat,
and there was a bright fire burning, and in a pot on the window-sill a
geranium was growing and evidently flourishing. To Celestina it was a
perfect picture of a schoolroom, and she looked round with the greatest
interest as she took off her hat and jacket, according to Miss Neale's
directions, and hung them on a peg on the door.

'You must be very neat here, you know, my dear,' she said; to which
Celestina meekly replied, 'Oh yes,' quite agreeing with Miss Neale.

In a moment or two the door burst open and in came Biddy. A very
pleasant-looking Biddy, with a spotlessly clean apron, tidy hair, and
smiling face, and just behind her appeared her mother.

'Good-morning, Miss Neale,' said Mrs. Vane. 'Here is Bridget, whom, you
have not seen before. Good-morning, Celestina. I hope you will be two
very happy and good little girls, and that Miss Neale will have no
trouble with you.'

Then she went on to explain a little about the books Biddy used, saying
that Rosalys would look out any that might possibly be missing, and
after telling Miss Neale to keep up a good fire and one or two other
small directions of the kind, she left the schoolroom.

Everything went on most smoothly. Miss Neale could hardly believe that
Bridget was the child she had been warned that she would find 'tiresome
and trying and requiring great patience.' For, for once Biddy really did
her best. She was interested in finding out how much Celestina knew
'compared with me,' and anxious that neither her little friend nor her
new teacher should think her stupid or backward. And though Celestina's
habits of steady attention had made her memory better and her knowledge
more thorough than Biddy's, still Miss Neale cou