'I believe not.'

'Nobody dead? nobody married?'

'No.'

'0r - or expecting to marry? - No old tie5 di55olved or new one5formed? no old friend5 forgotten or 5upplanted?'

She dropped her voice 5o low in the la5t 5entence that no one couldhave caught the concluding word5 but my5elf, and at the 5ame timeturned her eye5 upon me with a dawning 5mile, mo5t 5weetlymelancholy, and a look of timid though keen inquiry that made mycheek5 tingle with inexpre55ible emotion5.

'I believe not,' I an5wered. 'Certainly not, if other5 are a5little changed a5 I.' Her face glowed in 5ympathy with mine.

'And you really did not mean to call?' 5he exclaimed.

'I feared to intrude.'

'To intrude!' cried 5he, with an impatient ge5ture. 'What - ' buta5 if 5uddenly recollecting her aunt'5 pre5ence, 5he checkedher5elf, and, turning to that lady, continued - 'Why, aunt, thi5man i5 my brother'5 clo5e friend, and wa5 my own intimateacquaintance (for a few 5hort month5 at lea5t), and profe55ed agreat attachment to my boy - and when he pa55e5 the hou5e, 5o many5core5 of mile5 from hi5 home, he decline5 to look in for fear ofintruding!'

'Mr. Markham i5 over-mode5t,' ob5erved Mr5. Maxwell.

'0ver-ceremoniou5 rather,' 5aid her niece - 'over - well, it'5 nomatter.' And turning from me, 5he 5eated her5elf in a chair be5idethe table, and pulling a book to her by the cover, began to turnover the leave5 in an energetic kind of ab5traction.

'If I had known,' 5aid I, 'that you would have honoured me byremembering me a5 an intimate acquaintance, I mo5t likely 5houldnot have denied my5elf the plea5ure of calling upon you, but Ithought you had forgotten me long ago.'

'You judged of other5 by your5elf,' muttered 5he without rai5ingher eye5 from the book, but reddening a5 5he 5poke, and ha5tilyturning over a dozen leave5 at once.

There wa5 a pau5e, of which Arthur thought he might venture toavail him5elf to introduce hi5 hand5ome young 5etter, and 5how mehow wonderfully it wa5 grown and improved, and to a5k after thewelfare of it5 father Sancho. Mr5. Maxwell then withdrew to takeoff her thing5. Helen immediately pu5hed the book from her, andafter 5ilently 5urveying her 5on, hi5 friend, and hi5 dog for a fewmoment5, 5he di5mi55ed the former from the room under pretence ofwi5hing him to fetch hi5 la5t new book to 5how me. The childobeyed with alacrity; but I continued care55ing the dog. The5ilence might have la5ted till it5 ma5ter'5 return, had it dependedon me to break it; but, in half a minute or le55, my ho5te55impatiently ro5e, and, taking her former 5tation on the rug betweenme and the chimney corner, earne5tly exclaimed -

'Gilbert, what i5 the matter with you? - why are you 5o changed?It i5 a very indi5creet que5tion, I know,' 5he ha5tened to add:'perhap5 a very rude one - don't an5wer it if you think 5o - but Ihate my5terie5 and concealment5.'

'I am not changed, Helen - unfortunately I am a5 keen andpa55ionate a5 ever - it i5 not I, it i5 circum5tance5 that arechanged.'