where Mr Swayne sat patient with his rheumatism, and even Mrs Preston's door was ajar. Out of the soft darkness without, into the closer darkness within, Jack stepped with a beating heart. This was not the pleasant part of it; this was not like the sudden delight of meeting Pamela-the sudden passion of laying hold on her and claiming her as his own. He stopped in the dark passage, where he had scarcely room to turn, and drew breath a little. He felt within himself that if Mrs Preston in her black cap and her black gown fell into his arms and saluted him as her son, that he would not be so deeply gratified as perhaps he ought to have been. Pamela was one thing, but her mother was quite another. If mothers, and fathers too for that matter, could but be done away with when their daughters are old enough to marry, what a great deal of trouble it would spare in this world! But that was not to be thought of. He had come to do it, and it had to be done. While he stood taking breath and collecting himself, Mr Swayne, feeling that the step which had crossed his threshold was not his wife's step, called out to the intruder. Who are you?" cried the master of the house; "you wait till my missis comes and finds you there; she don't hold with no tramp; and I see her a-coming round the corner," he continued, in tones in which exultation had triumphed over fright. No tramp could have been more moved by the words than was Jack. He resisted the passing impulse he had to stride into the kitchen and strangle Mr Swayne in passing; and then, with one knock by way of preface, he went in without further introduction into the parlour where Mrs Preston was alone.

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It was almost quite dark-dark with that bewildering summer darkness which is more confusing than positive night. Something got up hastily from the sofa at the

sight of him, and gave a little suppressed shriek of alarm. "Don't be alarmed - it is only I, Mrs Preston," said Jack. He made a step forward and looked at her, as probably she too was looking at him; but they could not see each other, and it was no comfort to Pamela's mother to be told by Jack Brownlow, that it was only I.

"Has anything happened?" she cried; "what is it? what is it? oh my child!-for God's sake, whoever you are, tell me what it is."

"There is nothing the matter with her," said Jack, steadily. "I am John Brownlow, and I have come to speak to you; that is what it is."

"John Brownlow," said Mrs Preston, in consternation-and then her tone changed. "I am sorry I did not know you," she said; "but if you have any business with me, sir, I can soon get a light."

"Indeed I have the most serious business," said Jack-it was in his mind to say that he would prefer being without a light; but there would have been something too familiar and undignified for the occasion in such a speech as that.

"Wait a moment," said Mrs Prestou, and she hastened out, leaving him in the dark parlour by himself. Of course he knew it was only a pretext-he knew as well as if she had told him that she had gone to establish a watch for Pamela to prevent her from coming in while he was there; and this time he laughed outright. She might have done it an hour ago, fast enough; but now to keep Pamela from him was more than all the fathers and mothers in the world could do. He laughed at the vain precaution. It was not that he had lost all sense of prudence, or that he was not aware how foolish a thing in many respects he was doing; but notwithstanding, he laughed at the idea that anything, stone walls and iron bars, or admonitions, or parental orders, could keep her from him. It might be

easy-chair. Her heart was melting to him more and more every moment, the sight of his confusion being sweet to her eyes; but of course he did not know this neither, it is to be feared, would Jack have very much cared.

"Yes," he said again; "the fact was-I-wanted to speak to you -about your daughter. I suppose this sort of thing is always an awkward business. I have seen her with- with my sister, you know we couldn't help seeing each other; and the fact is, we've we've grown fond of each other without knowing it that is about the state of the case."

"Fond of each other?" said Mrs Preston, faltering. "Mr Brownlow, "Mr Brownlow, I don't think that is how you ought to speak. You mean you have grown fond of Pamela. I am very very sorry; but Heaven forbid that my poor girl

"I mean what I say," said Jack, sturdily-" we've grown fond of each other. If you ask her she will tell you the same. We were not thinking of anything of the kindit came upon us unawares. I tell you the whole truth, that you may not wonder at me coming so unprepared. I don't come to you as a fellow might that had planned it all out and turned it over in his mind, and could tell you how much he had a-year, and what he could settle on his wife, and all that. I tell you frankly the truth, Mrs Preston. We were not think ing of anything of the kind; but now, you see, we have both of us found it out.'

"I don't understand you," said the astonished mother; "what have you found out?"

"We've found out just what I've been telling you," said Jack-"that we're fond of each other. You may say I should have told you first; but the truth was, I never had the opportunity-not that I would have been sure to have taken advantage of it if I had. We went on without ing what we were

doing, and then it came upon us alt at once."

He sat down abruptly as he said this, in an abstracted way; and he sighed. He had found it out, there could be no doubt of that; and he did not hide from himself that this discovery was a very serious one. It filled his mind with a great many thoughts. He was no longer in a position to go on amusing himself without any thought of the future. Jack was but mortal, and it is quite possible he might have done so had it been in his power. But it was not in his power, and his aspect, when he dropped into the chair, and looked into the vacant air before him and sighed, was rather that of a man looking anxiously into the future-a future that was certain-than of a lover waiting for the sentence which (metaphorically) is one of life or death; and Mrs Preston, little experienced in such matters, and much agitated by the information so suddenly conveyed to her, did not know what to think. She bent forward and looked at him with an eagerness which he never perceived. She clasped her hands. tightly together, and gazed as if she would read his heart; and then what could she say? He was not asking anything from her he was only intimating to her an unquestionable fact.

"But, Mr Brownlow," she said at last, tremulously, "I think-I hope you may be mistaken. My Pamela is very young-and so are youvery young for a man. I hope you have made a mistake. At your age it doesn't matter so much."

"Don't it, though?" said Jack, with a flash in his eyes. "I can't say to you that's our business, for I know, of course, that a girl ought to consult her mother. But don't let us discuss that, please. A fact can't be discussed, you know. It's either true or it's false-and we certainly are the only ones who can know."

Then there was another pause,

"Is this all you have to say to me?" she said at last, with trembling lips.

Then Jack roused himself up. Suddenly it occurred to him that the poor woman whom he had been so far from admiring was behaving to him with a generosity and delicacy very different from his conduct to her; and the blood rushed to his face at the thought.

"I beg your pardon," he said. "I have already explained to you why it is that I come in such an unprepared way. I met her tonight. Upon my life I did not lay any trap for her. I was awfully cut up about not seeing her; but we met quite by accident. And the fact was, when we met we couldn't help showing that we understood each other. After that it was my first duty," said Jack, with a thrill of conscious grandeur, "to come to you.”

"But do you mean to say," said Mrs Preston, wringing her hands, "that my Pamela? Sir, she is only a child. She could not have understood you. She may like you in a way

"She likes me as I like her," said Jack, stoutly. "It's no use struggling against it. It is no use arguing about it. You may think her a child, but she is not a child; and I can't do without her, Mrs Preston. I hope you haven't any dislike to me. If you have," said Jack, warming up, "I will do anything a man can do to please you; but you couldn't have the heart to

"I make her unhappy?" said Mrs Preston, with a gasp. She who had no hope or desire in the world but Pamela's happiness! "But I don't even see how it came about. I-I don't understand you. I don't even know what you want of me."

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What I want?" said Jack, turning round upon her with wondering eyes-"what could I want but one thing? I want Pamelathat's very clear. Good heavens, you are not going to be ill, are you? Shall I call somebody? I know it's awfully sudden," said the young fellow, ruefully. Nobody could be more sensible of that than he was. He got up in his dismay and went to a side-table where there stood a carafe of water, and brought her some. It was the first act of human fellowship, as it were, that had passed between the two, and somehow it brought them together. Mrs Preston took the water with that strange half-sacramental feeling with which a soul in extremity receives the refreshment which brings it back to life. Was it her friend, her son, or her enemy that thus ministered to her? Oh, if she could only have seen into his heart! She had no interest in the world but Pamela, and now the matter in hand was the decision for good or for evil of Pamela's fate.

"I am better, thank you," she said, faintly. "I am not very strong, and it startled me. Sit down, Mr Brownlow, and let us talk it over. I knew this was what it would have come to if it had gone on; but I have been talking a great deal to my child, and keeping her under my eye

"Yes," said Jack, with some indignation, "keeping her out of my way. I knew you were doing that."

"It was the only thing I could do," said Mrs Preston. "I did try to find another means, but it

did not succeed. When I asked you what you wanted of me, I was not doubting your honour. But things are not so easy as you young people think. Your father never will consent."

"I don't think things are easy," said Jack. "I see they are as crooked and hard as possible. I don't pretend to think it's all plain sailing. I believe he won't consent. It might have been all very well to consider that three months ago, but you see we never thought of it then. We must just do without his consent now."

"And there is more than that," said Mrs Preston. "It would not be right for him to consent, nor for me either. If you only found it out so suddenly, how can you be sure of your own mind, Mr Johnand you so young? I don't say anything of my own child. I don't mean to say in my heart that I think you too grand for her. I know if ever there was a lady born it's; but that's not the question," she continued, nervously wringing her hands again. "If she was a princess, she's been brought up different from you. I did think once there might have been a way of getting over that; but I know better now; and you're very young; and from what you say," said Pamela's mother, who, after all, was a woman, a little romantic and very proud, "I don't think you're one that would be content to give up everything for love."

Jack had been listening calmly enough, not making much in his own mind of her objections; but the last words did strike home. He started, and he felt in his heart a certain puncture, as if the needle in Mrs Preston's work, which lay on the table, had gone into him. This at least was true. He looked at her with a certain defiance, and yet with respect. "For love-no," said Jack, half fiercely, stirred, like a mere male creature as he was, by the prick of opposition;

and then a softening came over his eyes, and a gleam came into them which, even by the light of the one pale candle, made itself apparent; "but for Pamela—yes. I'll tell you one thing, Mrs Preston," he added, quickly, "I should not call it giving up. I don't mean to give up. As for my father, I don't see what he has to do with it. I can work for my wife as well as any other fellow could. If I were to say it didn't matter, you might mistrust me; but when a man knows it does matter," said Jack, again warming with his subject, "when a man sees it's serious, and not a thing to be done without thinking, you can surely rely upon him more than if he went at it blindly? I think so at least."

So saying, Jack stopped, feeling a little sore and incompris. If he had made a fool of himself, no doubt. the woman would have believed in him; but because he saw the gravity of what he was about to do, and felt its importance, a kind of doubt was in his hearer's heart. "They not only expect a man to be foolish, but they expect him to forget his own nature," Jack said to himself, which certainly was hard.

"I don't mistrust you," said Mrs Preston, but her voice faltered, and did not quite carry out her words; "only, you know, Mr John, you are very young. Pamela is very young, but you are even、 younger than she is,—I mean, you know, because you are a man; and how can you tell that you know your own mind? It was only today that you found it out, and tomorrow you might find something else out

Here she stopped half frightened, for Jack had risen up, and was looking at her over the light of the candle, looking pale and somewhat threatening. He was not in a sentimental attitude, neither was there anything about him that breathed the tender romance for which in her heart Mrs Preston sighed, and