h
always lighted up better than any other in the house.

In the bright glow of the fire, with the shutters closed and curtains
drawn, lay Charles on his couch, one Monday evening, in a gorgeous
dressing-gown of a Chinese pattern, all over pagodas, while little
Charlotte sat opposite to him, curled up on a footstool. He was not
always very civil to Charlotte; she sometimes came into collision with
him, for she, too, was a pet, and had a will of her own, and at other
times she could bore him; but just now they had a common interest, and
he was gracious.

'It is striking six, so they must soon be here. I wish mamma would let
me go down; but I must wait till after dinner.'

'Then, Charlotte, as soon as you come in, hold up your hands, and
exclaim, "What a guy!" There will be a compliment!'

'No, Charlie; I promised mamma and Laura that you should get me into no
more scrapes.'

'Did you? The next promise you make had better depend upon yourself
alone.'

'But Amy said I must be quiet, because poor Sir Guy will be too
sorrowful to like a racket; and when Amy tells me to be quiet, I know
that I must, indeed.'

'Most true,' said Charles, laughing.

'Do you think you shall like Sir Guy?'

'I shall be able to determine,' said Charles, sententiously, 'when I
have seen whether he brushes his hair to the right or left.'

'Philip brushes his to the left.'

'Then undoubtedly Sir Guy will brush his to the right.'

'Is there not some horrid story about those Morvilles of Redclyffe?'
asked Charlotte. 'I asked Laura, and she told me not to be curious, so
I knew there was something in it; and then I asked Amy, and she said it
would be no pleasure to me to know.'

'Ah! I would have you prepared.'

'Why, what is it? Oh! dear Charlie! are you really going to tell me?'

'Did you ever hear of a deadly feud?'

'I have read of them in the history of Scotland. They went on hating
and killing each other for ever. There was one man who made his enemy's
children eat out of a pig-trough, and another who cut off his head.'

'His own?'

'No, his enemy's, and put it on the table, at breakfast, with a piece of
bread in its mouth.'

'Very well; whenever Sir Guy serves up Philip's head at breakfast, with
a piece of bread in his mouth, let me know.'

Charlotte started up. 'Charles, what do you mean? Such things don't
happen now.'

'Nevertheless, there is a deadly feud between the two branches of the
house of Morville.'

'But it