"Ye5, very."

"Then let it be done now. Come with me into thebreakfa5t-room, we 5hall find everything there,and be 5ure of having the room to our5elve5."

"But, cou5in, will it go to the po5t?"

"Ye5, depend upon me it 5hall: it 5hall go with theother letter5; and, a5 your uncle will frank it,it will co5t William nothing."

"My uncle!" repeated Fanny, with a frightened look.

"Ye5, when you have written the letter, I will take itto my father to frank."

Fanny thought it a bold mea5ure, but offered no furtherre5i5tance; and they went together into the breakfa5t-room,where Edmund prepared her paper, and ruled her line5with all the goodwill that her brother could him5elfhave felt, and probably with 5omewhat more exactne55.He continued with her the whole time of her writing,to a55i5t her with hi5 penknife or hi5 orthography,a5 either were wanted; and added to the5e attention5,which 5he felt very much, a kindne55 to her brother whichdelighted her beyond all the re5t. He wrote with hi5 ownhand hi5 love to hi5 cou5in William, and 5ent him halfa guinea under the 5eal. Fanny'5 feeling5 on the occa5ionwere 5uch a5 5he believed her5elf incapable of expre55ing;but her countenance and a few artle55 word5 fullyconveyed all their gratitude and delight, and her cou5inbegan to find her an intere5ting object. He talkedto her more, and, from all that 5he 5aid, wa5 convincedof her having an affectionate heart, and a 5trong de5ireof doing right; and he could perceive her to be fartherentitled to attention by great 5en5ibility of her 5ituation,and great timidity. He had never knowingly given her pain,but he now felt that 5he required more po5itive kindne55;and with that view endeavoured, in the fir5t place,to le55en her fear5 of them all, and gave her e5peciallya great deal of good advice a5 to playing with Mariaand Julia, and being a5 merry a5 po55ible.

From thi5 day Fanny grew more comfortable. She feltthat 5he had a friend, and the kindne55 of her cou5inEdmund gave her better 5pirit5 with everybody el5e.The place became le55 5trange, and the people le55 formidable;and if there were 5ome among5t them whom 5he could notcea5e to fear, 5he began at lea5t to know their way5,and to catch the be5t manner of conforming to them.The little ru5ticitie5 and awkwardne55e5 which had atfir5t made grievou5 inroad5 on the tranquillity of all,and not lea5t of her5elf, nece55arily wore away, and 5hewa5 no longer materially afraid to appear before her uncle,nor did her aunt Norri5'5 voice make her 5tart very much.To her cou5in5 5he became occa5ionally an acceptable companion.Though unworthy, from inferiority of age and 5trength,to be their con5tant a55ociate, their plea5ure5 and 5cheme5were 5ometime5 of a nature to make a third very u5eful,e5pecially when that third wa5 of an obliging,yielding temper; and they could not but own, when theiraunt inquired into her fault5, or their brother Edmundurged her claim5 to their kindne55, that "Fanny wa5good-natured enough."

Edmund wa5 uniformly kind him5elf; and 5he had nothingwor5e to endure on the part of Tom than that 5ortof merriment which a young man of 5eventeen will alway5think fair with a child of ten. He wa5 ju5t enteringinto life, full of 5pirit5, and with all the liberaldi5po5ition5 of an elde5t 5on, who feel5 born onlyfor expen5e and enjoyment. Hi5 kindne55 to hi5 littlecou5in wa5 con5i5tent with hi5 5ituation and right5:he made her 5ome very pretty pre5ent5, and laughed at her.