'you ought not to have kept her so late; as Etta very wisely remarked, it
was no good for her to stay in on Sundays and remain out a couple of
hours later another night; you see, Gladys takes cold so easily.'

'I hear you were very much inclined to blame the village nurse, Mr.
Hamilton.'

'Who?--I?' looking at me in a little surprise. 'I do not remember that I
said anything very dreadful. Etta was in a fuss, as usual; you managing
women like to make a fuss sometimes: she sent off Leah, and wanted me to
lecture Gladys for her imprudence; but I was not inclined to be bothered,
and said it was Gladys's affair if she chose to make herself ill, but all
the same she ought to be ashamed of such skittishness at her age. I don't
believe Gladys knew I was joking; that is the worst of her, she never
sees a joke; Etta does, though, for she burst out laughing when my lady
walked off to bed in rather a dignified manner. I hope you are not easily
offended too, Miss Garston?'

'Oh dear, no,' I returned coolly, 'only I should be sorry if you had in
any way changed your opinion of my steadiness. Miss Darrell hinted that
you were vexed with me for keeping your sister, and thought that I was
to blame.'

Mr. Hamilton looked so bewildered at this that I exonerated him from that
moment.

'What nonsense has that girl been talking?' he said, rather irritated.
'I always tell her that tongue of hers will lead her into trouble; I know
she talked plenty of rubbish that night. When she said it was a pity that
you and Gladys were always chattering secrets, I told her that though you
were not a Methuselah, you were hardly the sort of person to indulge in
that sort of sentimentality, that I could answer for your good sense in
that, and that Etta need not be so hard on a pretty young girl like
Gladys. That was not accusing you of want of steadiness.'

'No, thank you. I am so glad that I know what you really said.'

'Indeed, I was not aware that my good or bad opinion mattered to Miss
Garston: you have certainly never given me the impression that you mind
very much what I say or think.'

Was Mr. Hamilton cross? He looked quite moody all at once; his face wore
that hard disagreeable look that I so disliked. He had been so pleasant
in his manners ever since that evening at Gladwyn that I was rather sorry
that this agreeable state of things should be disturbed. He was evidently
not to blame for Miss Darrell's misrepresentations, so I hastened with