servant entered at last, with the information that the guests were
beginning to arrive, and that Lady Darcy would be glad to see the young
ladies without delay. Esther was anxious to wait and help Peggy with
her toilet, but that young lady was still on her dignity, and by no
means anxious to descend to a scene of gaiety for which she had little
heart. She refused the offer, therefore, in Mariquita fashion, and the
sisters walked dejectedly along the brightly-lit corridors, Mellicent
still continuing her melancholy wail, and Esther reflecting sadly that
all was vanity, and devoutly wishing herself back in the peaceful
atmosphere of the vicarage.

CHAPTER TWENTY TWO.

FIRE!

It was fully half an hour later when Peggy crept along the passage, and
took advantage of a quiet moment to slip into the room and seat herself
in a sheltered corner. Quick as she was, however, somebody's eyes were
even quicker, for a tall figure stepped before her, and an aggrieved
voice cried loudly--

"Well, I hope you are smart enough to satisfy yourself, now that you
_are_ ready! You have taken long enough, I must say. What about that
first waltz that you promised to have with me?"

Peggy drew in her breath with a gasp of dismay.

"Oh, Rob, I am sorry! I forgot all about it. I've been so perturbed.
Something awful has occurred. You heard about it, of course--"

"No, I didn't? What on earth," began the boy anxiously; but so soon as
he heard the two words "Rosalind's dress!" he shrugged his shoulders in
contemptuous indifference. "Oh, that! I heard something about it, but
I didn't take much notice. Spilt some ink, didn't you? What's the odds
if you did? Accidents will happen, and she has a dozen others to choose
from. I don't see anything wrong with the dress. It looks decent
enough."

Peggy followed the direction of his eyes, and caught a glimpse of
Rosalind floating past on the arm of a tall soldierly youth. She was
sparkling with smiles, and looking as fresh and spotless as on the
moment when she had stepped across the threshold of her own room.
Neither face nor dress bore any trace of the misfortune of an hour
before, and Peggy heaved a sigh of relief as she watched her to and fro.

"Jolly enough, isn't she? There's nothing for you to fret about, you
see," said Rob consolingly. "She has forgotten all about it, and the
best thing you can do is to follow her example. What would you think of
some light refreshme