'  Alice,  love,  Emily  will  stay  and  read  to  me— go  down  and
tell  Mr  Coverdale  how  much  obliged  I  am  ;  he  carried  me  as
comfortably  as  if  he  had  been  in  the  constant  habit  of  doing
so  for  years.  The  kindness  of  heart,  and  delicacy  of  feeling
with  which  he  made  the  offer,  have  gratified  me  exceedingly ;
depend  upon  it  he  is  an  unusually  amiable,  excellent  young
man.'

'  He  certainly  appears  in  a  new  character  to-night,'  re-
turned Emily,  laughing;  'hitherto  he  has  performed  the
modern  Timon  most  naturally  and  successfully.  I  wonder
what  made  the  creature  take  it  into  his  head  to  act  the  man —
or  rather  the  woman — hater  1  You'd  better  ask  him,  Alice,
perhaps  he  will  teWyou  ! — What,  gone  already ! '  she  continued,


58     HARRY  COVERDALE'S  COURTSHIP

glancing  round  the  room.  '  Well  thenj  mamma  dear,  as  there
seems  to  be  no  more  fun  forthcoming,  let  me  give  you  your
dose  of  Jeremy  Taylor ;  that  is  our  present  good  book,  I
believe.'

A  reproof  for  the  levity  with  which  Emily  spoke  rose  to  her
mother's  lips ;  but  Mrs  Hazlehurst  was  a  sensible  woman  as
well  as  a  good  one,  and  so,  being  able  to  distinguish  between
the  exuberance  of  high  spirits  and  a  scoffing  turn  of  mind,  she
only  murmured,  'Silly  child,'  and  shook  her  head,  with  a
reproving  smile.
