hat dear Lady Betty, she is such a crisp little piece of
human goods; no one has properly unfolded her, or tested her good
qualities; she is quite new and fresh, a novelty in girls. One never
knows what she will say or do next: it is that that fascinates me, I
believe; because,' went on Jill, and her great eyes grew bright and
puzzled, 'it is not that she is clever; one gets to the bottom of her
at once; there is not enough depth to drown you.'

Jill did not take so readily to Gladys; she admired her, even liked her,
but frankly owned that she found her depressing. 'If I talk to her long,
I get a sort of ache over me,' she observed, in her graphic way. 'It is
not that she looks dreadfully unhappy, but that there is no happiness in
her face. Do you know what I mean? for I am apt to be vague. It rests me
to look at you, Ursula; there is something quiet and comfortable in your
expression; now, Miss Hamilton looks as though she had lost something she
values, or never had it, and must go on looking for it, like that poor
ghost lady who wanted to find her lost pearl.'

Jill never could be induced to say much in Mr. Hamilton's favour, though
he was very civil to her and paid her a great deal of attention. 'Oh,
him!' she would say contemptuously, if I ever hazarded an observation: 'I
never take much notice of odd-looking, ugly men: they may be clever, but
they are not in my line. Mr. Hamilton stares too much for my taste, and
I don't believe he is kind to his sisters; they are half afraid of him.'
And nothing would induce her to alter her opinion.

But Miss Darrell thoroughly amused her. Jill's shrewd, honest eyes were
hardly in fault there: she used to narrate with glee any little fact she
could glean about 'the lady with two faces,' as she used to call her.

'Oh, she is a deep one,' Jill would say. 'I could not understand her at
first. I thought she was just bright and talkative and good-natured, and
I thought it nice to sit and listen to her, and she was very kind, and
petted me a good deal, and I did not find her out at first.'

'Find her out! what do you mean, Jill?' I asked innocently.

'Why, that she is not good-natured a bit, really,' with a sagacious nod
of her head. 'She keeps a stock of smiles for Cousin Giles and any chance
visitor. She is not half so nice and charming when Miss Hamilton and Lady
Betty are alone with her. Oh, I heard her one day, when I was in the
conservatory with Lady Betty. Lady Betty held up