le indistinguishable noises, the stir and hum
of the busy hive into which I had entered. Now and then a door had
opened, and a head or a figure came out; but as instantly went back
again on seeing Madame, and the door was softly closed. We reached the
third floor. There a young lady appeared at the further end of the
gallery, and curtseyed to my conductress.

"Miss Bentley," said Madame, "this is your new companion, Miss
Randolph. Will you be so good as to show Miss Randolph her room?"

Madame turned and left us, and the young lady led me into the room she
had just quitted. A large room, light and bright, and pleasantly
furnished; but the one thing that struck my unaccustomed eyes was the
evidence of fulness of occupation. One bed stood opposite the
fireplace; another across the head of that, between it and one of the
windows; a third was between the doors on the inner side of the room.
Moreover, the first and the last of these were furnished with two
pillows each. I did not in the moment use my arithmetic; but the
feeling which instantly pressed upon me was that of want of breath.

"This is the bed prepared for you, I believe," said my companion
civilly, pointing to the third one before the window. "There isn't
room for anybody to turn round here now."

I began mechanically to take off my cap and gloves, looking hard at
the little bed, and wondering what other rights of possession were to
be given me in this place. I saw a washstand in one window and a large
mahogany wardrobe on one side of the fireplace; a dressing table or
chest of drawers between the windows. Everything was handsome and
nice; everything was in the neatest order; but--where were my clothes
to go? Before I had made up my mind to ask, there came a rush into the
room; I supposed, of the other inmates. One was a very large, fat,
dull-faced girl; I should have thought her a young woman, only that
she was here in a school. Another, bright and pretty, and very
good-humoured if there was any truth in her smiling black eyes, was
much slighter and somewhat younger; a year or two in advance of
myself. The third was a girl about my own age, shorter and smaller
than I, with also a pretty face, but an eye that I was not so sure of.
She was the last one to come in, and she immediately stopped and
looked at me; I thought, with no pleasure.

"This is Miss Randolph, girls," said Miss Bentley. "Miss Randolph,
Miss Macy."

I curtseyed to the fat girl, who gave me