"It's no matter you know I haven't got anything here; and besides, I shall not be here till New Year."
"Not here till New Year! yes, you shall," said little Ellen, throwing herself upon her neck; "indeed you aren't going away before that. I know you aren't I heard Grandmamma and Aunt Sophia talking about it. Say you will stay here till New Year do!"
"I should like to, very much indeed," said Ellen, "if Alice does."
In the midst of half a dozen kisses with which her little companion rewarded this speech, somebody close by said, pleasantly
"What time of night do you suppose it is?"
The girls started there was Mrs. Chauncey.
"Oh, Mamma!" exclaimed her little daughter, springing to her feet, "I hope you haven't heard what we have been talking about?"
"Not a word," said Mrs. Chauncey, smiling; "but as to-morrow will be long enough to talk in, hadn't you better go to bed now?"
Her daughter obeyed her immediately, after one more hug to Ellen, and telling her she was so glad she had come. Mrs. Chauncey stayed to see Ellen in bed, and press one kind, motherly kiss upon her face, so tenderly that Ellen's eyes were moistened as she withdrew. But in her dreams that night, the rosy, sweet face, blue eyes, and little plump figure of Ellen Chauncey played the greatest part.
She slept till Alice was obliged to waken her the next morning; and then got up with her head in a charming confusion of, pleasures past and pleasures to come things known and unknown, to be made for everybody's New Year presents linen collars and painted needlebooks; and no sooner was breakfast over than she was showing and explaining to Ellen Chauncey a particularly splendid and mysterious way of embroidering the edges of needlebook leaves. Deep in this, they were still an hour afterwards, and in the comparative merits of purple and rose-colour, when a little hubbub arose at the other end of the room, on the arrival of a new-comer. Ellen Chauncey looked up from her work, then dropped it, exclaiming, "There she is! now for the bag!" and pulled Ellen along with her towards the party. A young lady was in the midst of it, talking so fast, that she had not time to take off her cloak and bonnet. As her eye met Ellen's, however, she came to a sudden pause. It was Margaret Dunscombe. Ellen's face certainly showed no pleasure; Margaret's darkened with a very disagreeable surprise.