th her son
were concerned.

The colonel went back to his sofa. Esther sat down again by the coins.
She was not quite old enough to reflect much upon the developments of
human nature as they came before her; but she was conscious of a
disagreeable, troubled sensation left by this visit of Mrs. Dallas. It
had not been pleasant. It ought to have been pleasant: she was Pitt's
mother; she came on a kind errand; but Esther felt at once repelled and
put at a distance.

The child had not gone back to the dull despondency of the time before
Pitt busied himself with her; she was striving to fulfil all his
wishes, and working hard in order to accomplish more than he expected
of her. With the cherished secret hope of doing this, Esther was
driving at her books early and late. She went from the coins to the
histories Pitt had told her would illustrate them; she fagged away at
the dry details of her Latin grammar; she even tried to push her
knowledge of plants and see further into their relations with each
other, though in this department she felt the want of her teacher
particularly. From day to day it was the one pressing desire and
purpose in Esther's mind, to do more, and if possible much more, than
Pitt wanted her to do; so that she might surprise him and win his
respect and approbation. She thought, too, that she was in a fair way
to do this, for she was gaining knowledge fast, she knew; and it was a
great help towards keeping up spirit and hope and healthy action in her
mind. Nevertheless, she missed her companion and friend, with an
intense longing want of him which nobody even guessed. All the more
keen it was, perhaps, because she could speak of it to nobody. It
consumed the girl in secret, and was only saved from being disastrous
to her by the transformation of it into working energy, which
transformation daily went on anew. It did not help her much, or she
thought so, to remember that Pitt was coming home at the end of
December. He would not stay; and Esther was one of those thoughtful
natures that look all round a subject, and are not deceived by a first
fair show. He could not stay; and what would his coming and the delight
of it do, after all, but renew this terrible sense of want and make it
worse than ever? When he went away again, it would be for a long, long
time,--an absence of months; how was it going to be borne?

The problem of life was beginning early for Esther. And the child was
alone. Nobody knew what w