Year: 1876

und1SgulSed pleasure. Ana very
pleasant thing il was to lie on the sofa,
and watch her neat little white hands
plying the needle in my behalf. l had
been longing to see the hand without
the glove, and was abundantly salts
fed when saw it.


She had hemmed one side OF the hand
kerchief, and we had conversed on a
great variety of topics. when the weather
began to clear up, and the sun to shine
in at the windows. Rachel rose at
once to depart. l said that / was quite
sure itmust be dreadfully wet under foot,
and that was certain she was thinly
shod.


"Not very" she said.


But 1 insisted on satisfying myself,
and would not be content until she had
suffered to peep. out beneath the hem of
her gown one of the neatest little patent
leather slippers 1 had ever seen in my
life. said that they were very dainty
little things, but altogether fine weather
shoes, and not meant for wet decks.
But / remembered presently that l had
seen in her hand, when she entered the
room, pair of India rubber overshoes,
! uHu lOIlluOCu ASI VI OuODs


"They are my mistress" she said;
81 had been desired to fetch them from
the shop"


"Wear them," said, " all the same
they will be none the worse, and will
keep your little feet dry"


"But how can ?" she answered,
with smile "they will not fit me at
ALL"


"Too small ?" I said, laughing.


d" Yes, SIR" she said, with another
smile, even more charming than the first.
l told her that should not be satisfied
until I had decided that point myself,
and at last persuaded her to try. The
little rogue knew we'll the result. Her
feet were quite lost in them.


If have a weakness in the word, my
good fellow, it is in favor of pretty feet
and ankles so, when Rachel insisted on
taking her departure, I hobbled as we'll
as could to the window to see her pick
her way across the mud puddles. /
satisfied myself that the girls ankles
were as undeniable as her feet and she
was unequivocally bien chauSsee. l
could not help thinking of this long
after she was gone. And then it occur
redto me that Julia Harper was certainly
on rather large scale. She had q good
figure of its kind, and she had fine eyes;
but Rachel's were quite as bright and
much softer; and as for all the essentials
of graceful and feminine figure, the mis-
tress' was far inferior to the maids.
kept thinking of this all the evening,
and after L had gone to bed. And |
thought, too, of the very unpleasant
specimen of Julia's insincerity which
had betrayed itself in the case of the
slippers.


The next day was an auspicious one.
Looking prettier than ever, Rachel came
with note from her mistress. I was in
no hurry to open it, you may be sure.
[ asked Rachel a great number of ques-
tions, and was especially solicitous on
the score of wet feet, which I feared had
been the result of her last homeward
voyage from my lodgings. She had by
this time habituated herself to talk to
me in much more free and unembar-
ras3ed manner than when first she came
to my apartments and the more she
talked to me the more charmed l was
for she expressed herself SO well, had
such pleasant voice and delivered such
sensible opinions, that soon began to
think that the mental qualifications Of
the mistress (none of the highest be it
sald) We're by nomeans superior to those
of the maid. Indeed, to tell the truth,
my good fellow, was falling in love
with little Rachel as fast as 1 possibly
could.


This day, indeed precipitated the
crisis. We had talked some time to-
gether, when Rachel reminded me q
thought that there was an expression of
mock reproachfulness the little round
face) that had not read in her mistress
letter. opened it in careless manner;
and had no sooner read the first line
than [ burst out into loud laughter.
"Bravo, Rachel" exclaimed. "You
are nice little messenger, indeed, to
carry young lady's billets doatr. You
have given me a wrong letter." She
took up the envelope, which had fallen
to the ground, and showed me that it
was directed to edward Bloxham,
Esq" "All the better, Rachel" I said !;
"but this begins, l am am SO delight
ed, my dear Captain Cox Hurrah,
for the envelopesp


L looked into Rachel's face. It was
not easy to read the expression of it.
First sheseemed inclined to laugh-then
to cry. Then she blushed up to the
very roots of her hair. She was evident
ly in state of incertitude and confu-
sion-puzzled what course to pursue.
L folded up the letter, placed it in an
other envelope-not having, of course,
read another word of it's contents. What
was the cause of Julia's excessive de-
Light am not aware up to this moment :;
but could not help asking Rachei
something about Captain Cox. One
question led to another. Rachel hesi-
tated at first but at last, with faltering
voice and fearful face, told me the whole
truth. She said that she had felt her.
self for some time in very painful and
embarrassing situation. She recognized
her duty to her mistress, who had been
kind and indulgent to her-but she
could not help seeing that much which
mad been done was extremely wrong.
She had all along been ashamed of the
duty on which she was employed, and
had more than once hinted her disap-
probation but had been only laughed
at as prude. She had often reproached
herself for being party to the fraud
which had been practiced on me. She
had not at first fathomed the whole
extent OF it but now she knew how bad
a matter it was. The truth was, that
Miss Harper had for some time been
carrying on something more than a fir
tation with Captain Cox. But her
father disliked the man, who, though
very handsome and agreeable, bore any
thing but good character there