her mind at the moment of meeting ; and she could not but feel how much better it was to be the daughter of a gentleman of property in Croydon than the niece of an old woman who threw herself away on an Irish captain. Robert was carelessly kind, as became a prosperous man and a brother ; more intent on settling with the post-boy, inveighing agaimst the exorbitant advance in posting, and pondering over a doubtful halfcrown, than on welcoming a sister who was no longer likely to have any property for him to get the direction of.
‘Your road through the village is infamous, Elizabeth,’ said he; ‘worse than ever it was. By heaven! I would indict it if I lived near you. Who is surveyor now?’
There was a little niece at Croydon to be fondly enquired after by the kind-hearted Elizabeth, who regretted very much her not being of the party.
‘You are very good, replied her mother, ‘and I assure you it went very hard with Augusta to have us come away without her. I was forced to say we were only going to church, and promise to come back for her directly. But you know it would not do to bring her without her maid, and J am as particular as ever in having her properly attended to.’
‘Sweet little darling?,'cried Margaret. ‘It quite broke my heart to leave her.’
‘Then why was you in such a hurry to run away from her?’ cried Mrs. Robert. ‘You are a sad shabby girl. I have been quarrelling with you all the way we came, have not I? Such a visit as this I never heard of! You know how glad we are to have
