Opposite Neighbours.
"Wholesale and retail," replied Agnes, arranging her veil.
"Oh, I am very well content," said Letty, smiling. "We are well off as we are, and making money. John understands and likes his trade, and it is growing better every day."
"To be sure, he is getting into business as a builder,—which is rather better," remarked Agnes. "But you never had much regard to the opinions of the world,—not half enough, in my judgment."
"I was not brought up in that way."
"No: to be sure, you never had any great chance. You never were in society at all."
"Don't you call Mrs. Trescott and the Miss Daltons pretty good society?" asked Letty, laughing in spite of herself. "I do not think you will find much better in this town. That is one advantage of living out as I did,—associating constantly with superior people. But we won't mind about my social advantages, Agnes: I am very well satisfied with them, and so is John; and, that being the case, I don't know that any others need to trouble themselves much about the matter. Well, Harry," she added, as a pale little boy, with a crutch under his arm and a card of spelling-lessons in his hand, opened the door, and stood hesitating whether to come in. "Have you come to say your lesson?"
"Yes, ma'am," replied the little fellow coming forward to Letty's side and leaning upon her lap. He was a pretty child, some six or seven years of age, but pale and thin, and with one leg shrunken and twisted so as not to touch the floor.
"Who in the world is that?" asked Agnes.
"This is Harry Mercer," said Letty, "the son of our next door neighbour. His mother happened to say to me, some days ago, that she regretted very much she had no time to hear his lessons, and dared not send him to school. I told her she might send him to me for an hour in the morning, and I would see what I could do for him. I have a great deal of time on my hands now," she added, rather sadly.
"Well, I declare, you do beat all for getting acquainted with the neighbours!" said Agnes. "Why, I never even knew who lived there. I don't visit a single family in the street, except Mrs. Van Horn; and I don't mean to, either."