a few meekly-received reproaches from Marjory, no one said anything about the unexplained absence. Indeed, they were all too busy and too preoccupied to care; the greater grief of losing the cottage having swallowed up all lesser cares.
At a less trying time the girls would have discovered within ten minutes that Mabel was suffering from a suppressed secret; but now, everything was changed. Although Mabel fairly bristled with importance and gave out sundry very broad hints, no one paid the slightest attention. Gradually, in the stress of packing, the matter of the telegram faded from Mabel's short memory, for preparing to move proved a most exciting operation; and also a harrowing one. Every few moments somebody would say: "Our last day," and then the other three would fall to weeping on anything that happened to come handy. Of course the packing had stirred up considerable dust; this mingled with tears added much to the for-
