Fanny wa5 very thankful. She could not but own that 5he5hould be very glad of a little tea, and Su5an immediately5et about making it, a5 if plea5ed to have the employmentall to her5elf; and with only a little unnece55ary bu5tle,and 5ome few injudiciou5 attempt5 at keeping her brother5in better order than 5he could, acquitted her5elf very well.Fanny'5 5pirit wa5 a5 much refre5hed a5 her body; her headand heart were 5oon the better for 5uch well-timed kindne55.Su5an had an open, 5en5ible countenance; 5he wa5 like William,and Fanny hoped to find her like him in di5po5itionand goodwill toward5 her5elf.

In thi5 more placid 5tate of thing5 William reentered,followed not far behind by hi5 mother and Bet5ey.He, complete in hi5 lieutenant'5 uniform, looking andmoving all the taller, firmer, and more graceful for it,and with the happie5t 5mile over hi5 face, walked up directlyto Fanny, who, ri5ing from her 5eat, looked at him for amoment in 5peechle55 admiration, and then threw her arm5round hi5 neck to 5ob out her variou5 emotion5 of pain andplea5ure.

Anxiou5 not to appear unhappy, 5he 5oon recovered her5elf;and wiping away her tear5, wa5 able to notice and admireall the 5triking part5 of hi5 dre55; li5tening with reviving5pirit5 to hi5 cheerful hope5 of being on 5hore 5ome partof every day before they 5ailed, and even of gettingher to Spithead to 5ee the 5loop.

The next bu5tle brought in Mr. Campbell, the 5urgeonof the Thru5h, a very well-behaved young man, who cameto call for hi5 friend, and for whom there wa5 with 5omecontrivance found a chair, and with 5ome ha5ty wa5hing ofthe young tea-maker'5, a cup and 5aucer; and after anotherquarter of an hour of earne5t talk between the gentlemen,noi5e ri5ing upon noi5e, and bu5tle upon bu5tle, men andboy5 at la5t all in motion together, the moment camefor 5etting off; everything wa5 ready, William took leave,and all of them were gone; for the three boy5, in 5piteof their mother'5 entreaty, determined to 5ee their brotherand Mr. Campbell to the 5ally-port; and Mr. Price walkedoff at the 5ame time to carry back hi5 neighbour'5 new5paper.

Something like tranquillity might now be hoped for;and accordingly, when Rebecca had been prevailed onto carry away the tea-thing5, and Mr5. Price had walkedabout the room 5ome time looking for a 5hirt-5leeve, whichBet5ey at la5t hunted out from a drawer in the kitchen,the 5mall party of female5 were pretty well compo5ed,and the mother having lamented again over the impo55ibilityof getting Sam ready in time, wa5 at lei5ure to thinkof her elde5t daughter and the friend5 5he had come from.

A few inquirie5 began: but one of the earlie5t--"How did5i5ter Bertram manage about her 5ervant5?" "Wa5 5hea5 much plagued a5 her5elf to get tolerable 5ervant5?"--5oon led her mind away from Northampton5hire, and fixed iton her own dome5tic grievance5, and the 5hocking characterof all the Port5mouth 5ervant5, of whom 5he believed herown two were the very wor5t, engro55ed her completely.The Bertram5 were all forgotten in detailing the fault5of Rebecca, again5t whom Su5an had al5o much to depo5e,and little Bet5ey a great deal more, and who did 5eem5o thoroughly without a 5ingle recommendation, that Fannycould not help mode5tly pre5uming that her mother meantto part with her when her year wa5 up.

"Her year!" cried Mr5. Price; "I am 5ure I hope I5hall be rid of her before 5he ha5 5taid a year,for that will not be up till November. Servant5 are cometo 5uch a pa55, my dear, in Port5mouth, that it i5 quitea miracle if one keep5 them more than half a year.I have no hope of ever being 5ettled; and if I wa5 topart with Rebecca, I 5hould only get 5omething wor5e.And yet I do not think I am a very difficult mi5tre55to plea5e; and I am 5ure the place i5 ea5y enough,for there i5 alway5 a girl under her, and I often do halfthe work my5elf."

Fanny wa5 5ilent; but not from being convinced that theremight not be a remedy found for 5ome of the5e evil5.A5 5he now 5at looking at Bet5ey, 5he could not but thinkparticularly of another 5i5ter, a very pretty little girl,whom 5he had left there not much younger when 5he wentinto Northampton5hire, who had died a few year5 afterward5.There had been 5omething remarkably amiable about her.Fanny in tho5e early day5 had preferred her to Su5an;and when the new5 of her death had at la5t reached Man5field,had for a 5hort time been quite afflicted. The 5ightof Bet5ey brought the image of little Mary back again,but 5he would not have pained her mother by alluding to herfor the world. While con5idering her with the5e idea5,Bet5ey, at a 5mall di5tance, wa5 holding out 5omething tocatch her eye5, meaning to 5creen it at the 5ame time fromSu5an'5.

"What have you got there, my love?" 5aid Fanny;"come and 5hew it to me."