"Yes," said Lizzie, in the most languid tone she could assume. "I've come, but I shan't be able to stop long."
"Oh! That's a pity now; for I might ha' showed yer all the sights o' the fair, besides telling your fortune. You've brought the bit of silver I spoke about, ain't yer?"
"Yes, I've brought sixpence," said Lizzie.
"Well, come up here now, and we'll shut the door and have a quiet chat to ourselves," said the woman; and Lizzie, feeling very much gratified at this distinction, went up the little flight of steps.
She was amazed when she stepped inside to find herself in a cosy little room, with a bright carpet on the floor, a chintz-covered sofa at the opposite end, and chairs ranged along the sides, and a mahogany table in the centre.
"You see, I've got a tidy room to ask a lady into," said the woman, placing a chair for her guest and one for herself near the table.
"Ye-es, I did not think these places were so comfortable," said Lizzie, lost in amazement at her surroundings.
"Well, miss, I wouldn't tell everybody, but I must confess the show business isn't bad for making money. This is very well when we're on the road, but you should see our winter quarters. Oh! We're in clover in the wintertime. Like the bees, we make our honey or money in the summer, and spend it in the winter. And now for the bit of silver to cross the palm with. Take off your gloves, my dear, and hold your hand up to the light so that I can see the lines, and then we'll have a look at the cards and see what they say," and Mrs. Stanley produced a dirty pack of cards from her capacious pocket, and proceeded to shuffle them.
[CHAPTER III.]
THE FORTUNE-TELLER.