They left her alone. Ellen had coloured, but William's words did not hit very sore; since John's talk with her about the matter referred to, she had thought of it humbly and wisely; it is only pride that makes such fault-finding very hard to bear. She was very sorry, however, that they had fallen out again, and that her own passion, as she feared, had been the cause. A few tears had to be wiped away before she could see exactly how the old tree stood, then, taking up her pencil, she soon forgot everything in her work. It was finished, and with head now on one side, now on the other, she was looking at her picture with very great satisfaction, when her eye caught the figure of John standing before her.
"Is it done?" said he.
"It is done," said Ellen, smiling, as she rose up to let him come. He sat down to look at it.
"It is very well, he said "better than I expected it is very well indeed. Is this your first trial, Ellen?"
"Yes the first."
"You found it pleasant work?"
"Oh, very, very pleasant. I like it dearly."
"Then I will teach you. This shows you have a taste for it, and that is precisely what I wanted to find out. I will give you an easier copy next time. I rather expected, when you sat down," said he, smiling a little, "that the old tree would grow a good deal more crooked under your hands than I meant it to be."
Ellen blushed exceedingly. "I do believe, Mr. John," she said, stammering, "that you know everything I am thinking about."
"I might do that, Ellen, without being as wise as an oracle. But I do not expect to make any very painful discoveries in that line."