th a heavy heart.' In my place, miss, would you have insisted
on her explaining herself, after that? The one thing I naturally wanted
to know was, if I could speak to some lady, in the position of mistress
here, before I ventured to intrude. Mrs. Ellmother understood that it
was her duty to help me in this particular. Your poor aunt being out of
the question she mentioned you."

"How did she speak of me? In an angry way?"

"No, indeed--quite the contrary. She says, 'You will find Miss Emily
at the cottage. She is Miss Letitia's niece. Everybody likes her--and
everybody is right.'"

"She really said that?"

"Those were her words. And, what is more, she gave me a message for you
at parting. 'If Miss Emily is surprised' (that was how she put it) 'give
her my duty and good wishes; and tell her to remember what I said, when
she took my place at her aunt's bedside.' I don't presume to inquire
what this means," said Mrs. Mosey respectfully, ready to hear what it
meant, if Emily would only be so good as to tell her. "I deliver the
message, miss, as it was delivered to me. After which, Mrs. Ellmother
went her way, and I went mine."

"Do you know where she went?"

"No, miss."

"Have you nothing more to tell me?"

"Nothing more; except that she gave me my directions, of course, about
the nursing. I took them down in writing--and you will find them in
their proper place, with the prescriptions and the medicines."

Acting at once on this hint, Emily led the way to her aunt's room.

Miss Letitia was silent, when the new nurse softly parted the
curtains--looked in--and drew them together again. Consulting her watch,
Mrs. Mosey compared her written directions with the medicine-bottles on
the table, and set one apart to be used at the appointed time. "Nothing,
so far, to alarm us," she whispered. "You look sadly pale and tired,
miss. Might I advise you to rest a little?"

"If there is any change, Mrs. Mosey--either for the better or the
worse--of course you will let me know?"

"Certainly, miss."

Emily returned to the sitting-room: not to rest (after all that she had
heard), but to think.

Amid much that was unintelligible, certain plain conclusions presented
themselves to her mind.

After what the doctor had already said to Emily, on the subject of
delirium generally, Mrs. Ellmother's proceedings became intelligible:
they proved that she knew by experience the perilous course taken by her
mistress's wandering thou