d Cecilia de Noel, who recommended her--"

"Cecilia de Noel!" repeated Atherley, with that long-drawn emphasis
which suggests so much. "My dear Jane, I must say that in taking a
servant on Cissy's recommendation you did not display your usual sound
common sense. I should as soon have thought of asking her to buy me a
gun, knowing that she would carefully pick out the one least likely to
shoot anything. Cissy is accustomed to look upon a servant as something
to be waited on and taken care of. Her own household, as we all know,
is composed chiefly of chronic invalids."

"But I explained to Cecilia that I wanted somebody who was strong as
well as a good cook; and I am sure there is nothing the matter with Mrs.
Mallet. She is as fat as possible, and as red! Besides, she has never
been one of Cecilia's servants; she only goes there to help sometimes;
and she says she is perfectly respectable."

"Mrs. Mallet says that Cissy is perfectly respectable?"

"No, George; it is not likely that I should allow a person in Mrs.
Mallet's position to speak disrespectfully to me about Cecilia. Cecilia
said Mrs. Mallet was perfectly respectable."

"I should not think dear old Ciss exactly knew the meaning of the word."

"Cecilia may be peculiar in many ways, but she is too much of a lady to
send me any one who was not quite nice. I don't believe there is
anything against Mrs. Mallet's character. She cooks very well, you must
allow that; you said only two days ago you never had tasted an omelette
so nicely made in England."

"Did she cook that omelette? Then I am sure she is perfectly
respectable; and pray let her see as many ghosts as she cares to,
especially if it leads to nothing worse than her taking a moderate
quantity of brandy. Time to smoke, Lindy. I am off."

I dragged myself up after my usual fashion, and was preparing to follow
him, when Lady Atherley, directly he was gone, began:

"It is such a pity that clever people can never see things as others do.
George always goes on in this way as if the ghost were of no
consequence, but I always knew how it would be. Of course it is nice
that George should come in for the place, as he might not have done if
his uncle had married, and people said it would be delightful to live in
such an old house, but there are a good many drawbacks, I can assure
you. Sir Marmaduke lived abroad for years before he died, and everything
has got into such a state. We have had to nearly refurnish th