and they could hardly get him along at all this long meadow a lane which their at the end of it was to cross and when the party bad all reached the gate of exit the carriage advancing persuasion in the same direction which had been some time heard was just coming up and proved to be admiral s he and his wife had taken their intended drive and were returning home upon hearing how long a walk the young people had engaged in they kindly offered a seat to any lady who might be particularly tired it would save her full a mile and they were going through the invitation was general and generally declined the miss were not at all tired and mary was either offended by not being asked before any of the others or what called the pride could not endure to make a third in a one horse chaise the walking party had crossed the lane and were an opposite and the admiral was putting his horse into motion again when captain cleared the hedge in a moment to say something to his sister the something might be guessed by its effects miss i am sure you are tired cried mrs do let us have the pleasure of taking you home here is excellent room for three i assure you if we were all like you i believe we might sit four you must indeed you must anne was still in the lane and though instinctively beginning to decline she was not allowed to proceed the admiral s kind came in support of his wife s they would not be refused they compressed themselves into the smallest possible space to leave her a corner and captain without saying a word turned to her and quietly obliged her to be assisted into the carriage yes he had done it she was in the carriage and felt that he had placed her there that his will and his hands had done it that she owed it to his perception of her fatigue and his resolution to give her rest she was ter persuasion much affected by the view of his disposition towards her which things made apparent this little circumstance seemed the completion of all that had gone before she understood him he could not forgive her but he could not be though her for the past and considering it with high and unjust resentment though perfectly careless of her and though becoming attached to another he could not see her suffer without the desire of giving her relief it was a remainder of former sentiment it was an impulse of pure though friendship it of warm and amiable heart which she could not contemplate without emotions so of pleasure and pain that she knew not which prevailed her answers to the kindness and the remarks of her companions were at first unconsciously given they bad travelled half their way along the rough lane before she was awake to what they said she then found them talking of he certainly means to have one or other of those two girls said the admiral but there is no saying which he has been running after them too long enough one would think to make up his mind ay this comes of the peace if it were war now he would have settled it long ago we miss cannot afford to make long in time of war how many days was it my dear between the first time of my seeing you and our sitting down together in our lodgings at north we had better not talk about it ray dear replied mrs pleasantly for if miss were to hear how soon we came to an understanding she would never be persuaded that we could be happy together i had known you by character however long before well and i had heard of you as a very pretty and what were we to wait for besides i do not like persuasion having such things so long in hand i would spread a little and bring us home one of these young ladies to then thi would always be company for them and very ni young ladies they both are hardly know one the other very good humoured unaffected girls indeed mrs in a tone of calmer praise such as made anne suspect that her powers might i either of them as quite worthy of her brother j and a veiy respectable family one could not be connected with better people my dear admiral that post we shall certainly take that post but by coolly giving the reins a better self they happily passed the danger and by once afterwards putting out her hand ihey neither fell into a nor ran foul of a cart and anne with some amusement at their style of driving which she imagined no bad representation of the general guidance affairs found herself safely deposited by then at the cottage c x t he i e dow approached for lady a the day was even fixed and anne being engaged to join her as soon as she was was looking forward to an early removal to and beginning to think how her own comfort was to be affected by it it would place her in the same village with captain within half a mile of him they would have to frequent the same and there must be intercourse between the two families this was against her but on the other hand he spent so much of his persuasion s a like lee them cross that in removing thence might be considered rather as leaving him behind than as going towards him and upon die whole she believed she must on this interesting question be the almost as certainly as in her change of domestic society in leaving poor mary for lady she wished it might be possible for her to avoid ever seeing captain at 