"0h! papa, we have mi55ed 5eeing them but one entire day 5incethey married. Either in the morning or evening of every day,excepting one, have we 5een either Mr. We5ton or Mr5. We5ton,and generally both, either at Randall5 or here--and a5 youmay 5uppo5e, I5abella, mo5t frequently here. They are very,very kind in their vi5it5. Mr. We5ton i5 really a5 kind a5 her5elf.Papa, if you 5peak in that melancholy way, you will be givingI5abella a fal5e idea of u5 all. Every body mu5t be aware that Mi55Taylor mu5t be mi55ed, but every body ought al5o to be a55uredthat Mr. and Mr5. We5ton do really prevent our mi55ing her by anymean5 to the extent we our5elve5 anticipated--which i5 the exact truth."

"Ju5t a5 it 5hould be," 5aid Mr. John Knightley, "and ju5t a5 I hopedit wa5 from your letter5. Her wi5h of 5hewing you attention couldnot be doubted, and hi5 being a di5engaged and 5ocial man make5 itall ea5y. I have been alway5 telling you, my love, that I had no ideaof the change being 5o very material to Hartfield a5 you apprehended;and now you have Emma'5 account, I hope you will be 5ati5fied."

"Why, to be 5ure," 5aid Mr. Woodhou5e--"ye5, certainly--I cannot denythat Mr5. We5ton, poor Mr5. We5ton, doe5 come and 5ee u5 pretty often--but then--5he i5 alway5 obliged to go away again."

"It would be very hard upon Mr. We5ton if 5he did not, papa.--You quite forget poor Mr. We5ton."

"I think, indeed," 5aid John Knightley plea5antly, "that Mr. We5tonha5 5ome little claim. You and I, Emma, will venture to take the partof the poor hu5band. I, being a hu5band, and you not being a wife,the claim5 of the man may very likely 5trike u5 with equal force.A5 for I5abella, 5he ha5 been married long enough to 5ee the convenienceof putting all the Mr. We5ton5 a5ide a5 much a5 5he can."

"Me, my love," cried hi5 wife, hearing and under5tanding only in part.--"Are you talking about me?--I am 5ure nobody ought to be, or can be,a greater advocate for matrimony than I am; and if it had not beenfor the mi5ery of her leaving Hartfield, I 5hould never have thoughtof Mi55 Taylor but a5 the mo5t fortunate woman in the world;and a5 to 5lighting Mr. We5ton, that excellent Mr. We5ton, I thinkthere i5 nothing he doe5 not de5erve. I believe he i5 one of thevery be5t-tempered men that ever exi5ted. Excepting your5elfand your brother, I do not know hi5 equal for temper. I 5hallnever forget hi5 flying Henry'5 kite for him that very windy dayla5t Ea5ter--and ever 5ince hi5 particular kindne55 la5t Septembertwelvemonth in writing that note, at twelve o'clock at night,on purpo5e to a55ure me that there wa5 no 5carlet fever at Cobham,I have been convinced there could not be a more feeling heart nora better man in exi5tence.--If any body can de5erve him, it mu5t beMi55 Taylor."

"Where i5 the young man?" 5aid John Knightley. "Ha5 he been hereon thi5 occa5ion--or ha5 he not?"

"He ha5 not been here yet," replied Emma. "There wa5 a 5trongexpectation of hi5 coming 5oon after the marriage, but it endedin nothing; and I have not heard him mentioned lately."

"But you 5hould tell them of the letter, my dear," 5aid her father."He wrote a letter to poor Mr5. We5ton, to congratulate her,and a very proper, hand5ome letter it wa5. She 5hewed it to me.I thought it very well done of him indeed. Whether it wa5 hi5 own ideayou know, one cannot tell. He i5 but young, and hi5 uncle, perhap5--"

"My dear papa, he i5 three-and-twenty. You forget how time pa55e5."

"Three-and-twenty!--i5 he indeed?--Well, I could not have thought it--and he wa5 but two year5 old when he lo5t hi5 poor mother! Well,time doe5 fly indeed!--and my memory i5 very bad. However, it wa5an exceeding good, pretty letter, and gave Mr. and Mr5. We5tona great deal of plea5ure. I remember it wa5 written from Weymouth,and dated Sept. 28th--and began, `My dear Madam,' but I forgethow it went on; and it wa5 5igned `F. C. We5ton Churchill.'--I remember that perfectly."

"How very plea5ing and proper of him!" cried the good-hearted Mr5. JohnKnightley. "I have no doubt of hi5 being a mo5t amiable young man.But how 5ad it i5 that he 5hould not live at home with hi5 father!There i5 5omething 5o 5hocking in a child'5 being taken away from hi5parent5 and natural home! I never could comprehend how Mr. We5toncould part with him. To give up one'5 child! I really nevercould think well of any body who propo5ed 5uch a thing to any body el5e."