inevitable shock which you can only
postpone for a few minutes. Lady Macleod in this case had pulled the
string, and thus reaped the advantage of her alacrity.

"Well, my dear," said her ladyship, "I suppose you will like to go
up-stairs and take off your bonnet. Mary shall bring you some tea
when you come down." So Alice escaped, and when she returned to the
comfort of her cup of tea in the drawing-room, the fury of the storm
had passed away. She sat talking of other things till dinner; and
though Lady Macleod did during the evening make one allusion to "poor
Mr Grey," the subject was allowed to drop. Alice was very tender as
to her aunt's ailments, was more than ordinarily attentive to the
long list of Cheltenham iniquities which was displayed to her, and
refrained from combating any of her aunt's religious views. After
a while they got upon the subject of Aunt Greenow, for whose name
Lady Macleod had a special aversion,--as indeed she had for all the
Vavasor side of Alice's family; and then Alice offered to read, and
did read to her aunt many pages out of one of those terrible books of
wrath, which from time to time come forth and tell us that there is
no hope for us. Lady Macleod liked to be so told; and as she now,
poor woman, could not read at nights herself, she enjoyed her
evening.

Lady Macleod no doubt did enjoy her niece's sojourn at Cheltenham,
but I do not think it could have been pleasant to Alice. On the
second day nothing was said about Mr Grey, and Alice hoped that by
her continual readings in the book of wrath her aunt's heart might
be softened towards her. But it seemed that Lady Macleod measured
the periods of respite, for on the third day and on the fifth she
returned to the attack. "Did John Grey still wish that the match
should go on?" she asked, categorically. It was in vain that Alice
tried to put aside the question, and begged that the matter might
not be discussed. Lady Macleod insisted on her right to carry on the
examination, and Alice was driven to acknowledge that she believed he
did wish it. She could hardly say otherwise, seeing that she had at
that moment a letter from him in her pocket, in which he still spoke
of his engagement as being absolutely binding on him, and expressed a
hope that this change from London to Cheltenham would bring her round
and set everything to rights. He certainly did, in a fashion, wave
his hand over her, as Kate had said of him. This letter Alice had
res