d its destination.

Poor Clara, agitated by conflicting emotions, and all her previous
opinions upset, at last thought of writing to General Caulfield, telling
him of all her doubts and troubles, that perhaps he might see things in
the light in which the vicar presented them. Miss Pemberton found the
letter on the hall table, and suspecting its contents, took it to the
vicar, who advised that it should not be forwarded. Clara in vain
waited for a reply; no letters reached her from the general, and she
ultimately came to the conclusion that he was so much offended with her
for what she had said, that he would write no more.

Week after week passed by, and no letter came from Harry.

"Can he have cast me off because I show an anxiety about my spiritual
welfare?" she exclaimed, somewhat bitterly to herself. "Mr Lerew must
be right when he speaks of the bigotry of the Evangelical party."

Mr Lerew called the next day, and spoke pathetically of the trials to
which the true sons and daughters of the Church must expect to be
exposed; and left some tracts, which especially pointed out the holy
delights of a convent life; one, indeed, declared that the only sure way
by which a woman could avoid the trials and troubles of the present evil
world and gain eternal happiness was by entering a convent and devoting
herself to the service of religion. Clara read them over and over, and
sighed often. Miss Pemberton expressed her high approval of them.

"I am, indeed, my dear niece, contemplating myself becoming a Sister of
Charity, and only regret that I was not led in early life to do so--how
many wasted days of idleness and frivolity I might have avoided." Miss
Pemberton did not like to speak of years.

The vicar, who had now become an almost daily visitor, just then
appeared. He held forth eloquently on the subject of which the ladies
had been speaking; a friend of his, a most charming, delightful person,
was the Lady Superior of one of the oldest and most devoted sisterhoods
which had been established in England since, as he expressed it, true
Catholic principles had been revived in the Church, He was sure that no
lady could do otherwise than rejoice to the end of her days, who should
become a member of her community. The Sisters were employed in numerous
meritorious works of charity; he had hoped that Miss Maynard would take
an active part in Saint Agatha's College; but some time must probably
elapse before more than a