watches a dead likeness revived in a living face.

At last, when he had said all he couldeverything except stooping to the weakness of entreaty or complaint-Mr. Harper paused. "Now, Agatha, speak."

She felt that she must yield, yet tried to struggle a little longer. She had been so unused to control.

"You should have consulted with mehave explained more of your reasons, which as yet I do not comprehend. Why should you be so wondrously anxious to begin work? It is unreasonable, unkind."

"Am I unkind to you, my poor Agatha ?" His accent was that of unutterable pain.

"No! no! that you never are! OnlyI suppose because I am young and lately married I do not half understand you. What must I do, Miss Valery?"

Anne looked from one to the other

Nathanael, who, as was his habit in all moments of great trial, assumed an aspect unnaturally hard-and Agatha, whose young fierce spirit was just bursting out, wrathful, yet half repentant all the while. "What must you do? You must try to learn the lesson that every woman has to learn from and for the man she loves-to have faith in him."

"We women," she continued softly, "the very best and wisest of us, cannot enter thoroughly into the nature of the man we love. We can only love him. That is, when we once believe him worthy of affection. Firmly knowing that, we must bear with all the rest; and where we do not quite understand, we must, as I said, have faith in him. I have heard of some women whose faith has lasted all their life."

Anne's serious smile, and the beautiful steadfastness of her eyes, that vaguely turned seaward-though apparently looking at no

thing made a deep impression on the young wife.

She answered, thoughtfully, "I believe in my husband too, otherwise I would not have married him. Therefore, since our two wills seem to clash, and he is the older and the wiser-let him decide as he thinks best-I will try to have faith in him.'"

Nathanael grasped her hand, but spoke not-it seemed impossible to him. Soon after, they all rose and turned homeward, leaving the breezy terrace and the bright sunshiny sea. None turned to look back at either, excepting only-for one lingering, parting glance-Anne Valery.

CHAPTER III.

THE same afternoon Mr. and Mrs. Harper and Miss Valery drove to Kingcombe, to see if in that quaint little town there was a house suitable for the young couple. They had not said a word to either of the Miss Harpers concerning this sudden arrangement, agreeing that the father of the household ought to be shown the respect of receiving the first information.

"And then," said Nathanael, "I trust mainly to Anne Valery to overcome his scruples. Anne can do anything she likes with my father. Don't you remember," he continued, leaning over to the front seat

where the two ladies were, and looking quite cheerful, as though a great load had been taken off his mind-"don't you remember-I do, though I was such a little boy-how there was one day a grand family tumult because Frederick wanted his commission and my father refused it-how you walked up and down the garden, first with one and then with the other, persuading everybody to be friends, while Uncle Brian and I—"

"There, that will do," said Miss Valery,

faintly. "Never mind old times, but let us look forward to the future. Here we are at Kingcombe. Agatha, how do you like the place ?"

And Agatha, on this glowing autumn afternoon, eagerly examined her future home.

It was a rather note-worthy country town; small, clean, with an air of sober preservation, reminding one of a well-kept, dignified, healthy old age. It wore its antiquity with a sort of pride, as if its quaint streets, inter