rry a man whose conduct
showed him careless of his character, but that, "love once, love
always", was the motto of a true and pure woman, and no man should ever
have any right over her which would be a call on her to destroy the
dried flowers that she treasured, and always would treasure, for
Godfrey Cass's sake. And Nancy was capable of keeping her word to
herself under very trying conditions. Nothing but a becoming blush
betrayed the moving thoughts that urged themselves upon her as she
accepted the seat next to Mr. Crackenthorp; for she was so
instinctively neat and adroit in all her actions, and her pretty lips
met each other with such quiet firmness, that it would have been
difficult for her to appear agitated.

It was not the rector's practice to let a charming blush pass without
an appropriate compliment. He was not in the least lofty or
aristocratic, but simply a merry-eyed, small-featured, grey-haired man,
with his chin propped by an ample, many-creased white neckcloth which
seemed to predominate over every other point in his person, and somehow
to impress its peculiar character on his remarks; so that to have
considered his amenities apart from his cravat would have been a
severe, and perhaps a dangerous, effort of abstraction.

"Ha, Miss Nancy," he said, turning his head within his cravat and
smiling down pleasantly upon her, "when anybody pretends this has been
a severe winter, I shall tell them I saw the roses blooming on New
Year's Eve--eh, Godfrey, what do _you_ say?"

Godfrey made no reply, and avoided looking at Nancy very markedly; for
though these complimentary personalities were held to be in excellent
taste in old-fashioned Raveloe society, reverent love has a politeness
of its own which it teaches to men otherwise of small schooling. But
the Squire was rather impatient at Godfrey's showing himself a dull
spark in this way. By this advanced hour of the day, the Squire was
always in higher spirits than we have seen him in at the
breakfast-table, and felt it quite pleasant to fulfil the hereditary
duty of being noisily jovial and patronizing: the large silver
snuff-box was in active service and was offered without fail to all
neighbours from time to time, however often they might have declined
the favour. At present, the Squire had only given an express welcome
to the heads of families as they appeared; but always as the evening
deepened, his hospitality rayed out more widely, till he had tap