The foster-sisters

by Lucy Ellen Guernsey

Mrs. Chloe was very much hurt at her sister's want of confidence in her for a while, but her amiable spirit soon began to make excuses for her.

In truth, such marriages were not very uncommon in those days. Two people who were betrothed would steal away from a ball or party, perhaps, to another room in the same house, with two or three witnesses, be married, and return to the company as if nothing had happened; and marriages were sometimes kept a profound secret for months. It was not a good fashion, and brought about a good many complicated lawsuits, but it was not considered at all disreputable.

Mrs. Philippa's fortune was in her own right, and nobody had a shadow of authority over her, except, perhaps, her brother, and as she was older than he by two or three years, she naturally did not think he had any special right to direct her. Doctor Brown's family, though not distinguished, was respectable. There was nothing against him personally, and he had a comfortable private fortune besides his office at Durham. Nevertheless Sir Julius was furiously angry, and wrote Mrs. Deborah a most unreasonable letter—as though she had been the one to blame.

I think Mrs. Chloe suffered the most of any one from this very unexpected healing of Mrs. Philippa's twenty years' heart-break. She missed her sister, whom she had really loved despite her unkindness, and I am sure she felt it hard that Mrs. Philippa should get a rich husband, while she herself had none at all. It was truly pitiable to see how the poor thing's thoughts still ran upon such things, though every one in the house could see with half an eye that she was not long for this world. She grew thinner and weaker every day, and her little dry cough kept her awake in spite of all Mrs. Deborah's bread jellies, and poppy and lettuce syrups.

Mr. Lethbridge used to come and read to her sometimes, but she did not like him very much, and, indeed, he was not a cheering visitor. I used to wonder if he thought it was good for a sick person to hear the particulars of every case of illness and suffering in the parish.

Mrs. Philippa paid us a visit, during Lent, with her husband. I never in all my life saw any one so pleased with being married. She could talk of nothing else, and uttered some speeches which made us young ones feel as if we did not know where to look. I never was fond of seeing over-much billing and cooing in public between even young married folks; but I never saw a bride and bridegroom of twenty-one so exasperatingly silly in this respect as Doctor and Mrs. Brown. However, she was very good-natured, and invited us all to visit her so seen as she should be settled in her new house, which, according to her description, was quite a palace. She was especially kind to Mrs. Chloe, and took great pains to amuse her. She staid a whole week, and then left her old home apparently without a single regret.

We had another visitor during Lent, namely, Mr. Cheriton. It seems Mr. Lethbridge had business in Newcastle which would keep him there some three weeks, and Mr. Cheriton learning of it, arranged to exchange duties with him for that time. Oh what a comfort it was to have him preach again!

He held service on Wednesdays and Fridays, and, as we always went to church, we saw him tolerably often. Mrs. Deborah invited him to make the Hall his home during his stay, but he declined, saying that there were so many cases of severe illness among the people—as, indeed, there were—that he wished to be near at hand in case of a sudden call. Mrs. Deborah admitted the validity of the excuse, but begged him to come to dinner or supper without ceremony, as he would always find a plate, and he did so with very tolerable frequency. Both parties kept carefully clear of politics, and I think Mrs. Deborah came to regard Mr. Cheriton's whiggery as more his misfortune than his fault—as a kind of disorder that ran in some families like gout.

Mr. Cheriton was a fine musician, as I have said, and he brought us a great parcel of new music by the best composers. We used to sing together a deal, which was a great pleasure to Mrs. Chloe. Next to having a love affair of her own, was the pleasure of watching another's.

But Mr. Cheriton did Mrs. Chloe good in other and better ways. He himself proposed that as she could not go to church, he should have prayers for her benefit every Sunday evening, after which he would read her his sermon. He was a true "son of consolation," and knew just what to say and what not. Whenever he spent the evening with us, we had evening prayers, which we did not at other times, and Mr. Cheriton usually said a few words upon the Gospel for the day or week.