g the bell,
which was answered by a female domestic, who was too old and too infirm to
attend the funeral. Kate accosted her by saying, "Does Mr. Wilmot live
here?"

The old lady replied by lifting up her hand and exclaiming, while the
tears coursed their way down her cheeks, "Lord bless me if it isn't young
marster's sister."

"Yes, yes," said Kate impatiently, "I am his sister. But tell me, is he
dead? Am I too late?"

The woman replied, "Not too late to see him, if you're right spry. They've
carried him to the church."

"Where? What church is it?" asked Kate wildly.

"Right yender; that ar brick house with the tall steeple."

Kate waited for no more, but darted off in the direction of the church.
Meanwhile the services were ended, and the friends of the deceased were
taking their last leave of him. Mrs. Middleton and Mr. Miller stood on one
side of the coffin, while Dr. Lacey and Fanny were on the other. Fanny
gazed long and earnestly upon the face of her teacher, as if she would
stamp his likeness with daguerrean accuracy upon her heart.

She was turning sadly away, when a noise at the door caused all eyes to be
directed that way. A pale, lovely face was seen looking anxiously in, and
then a slight female figure advanced through the crowd, which gave way for
her to pass. She passed up the aisle till she reached the coffin, then
bursting into a flood of tears, she wrung her hands, exclaiming, "My
brother, oh my brother--are you indeed dead?" She then imprinted kiss after
kiss upon the cold lips of him who never before disregarded her caresses;
and as the full force of her loss came over her, she uttered a piercing
cry of anguish, and fell fainting into the arms of Mr. Miller, who
recognized in her beautiful features the original of the picture which Mr.
Wilmot had shown him a few months before.

He bore her out into the open air, where he was instantly surrounded by
half a dozen ladies, each insisting that the fair stranger should be taken
to her house. First among these was Mrs. Crane, who saw by a glance at
Kate that her presence would not be derogatory to any house, so she
determined to have her taken to her own dwelling, and urged her claim so
hard that Mr. Miller at last consented, thinking that Mrs. Williams must
be wearied with the recent illness of Mr. Wilmot.

Accordingly, when Kate was again restored to consciousness, she found
herself in an elegantly furnished room, with a gaily dressed, handsome