image of his Lizzie; and it was so long since he had seen her, that he would have almost hailed her appearance, had not the rumour of her engagement with Colonel Delmour reached his ears, and caused them to tingle to the very drum with indignation. She looked pale, and out of spirits too, and less like Lizzie than usual; so that he was ready to take the field against her, especially as he saw that she had got a new and more splendid equipage, and her dress was something he was not accustomed to see pass his windows every day.

"I canna say London has improved you," said he, scarcely looking at her. "I dinna think I wad hae kent you if I had met you. If that's a' you have made by it, I think you would have been just as weel at hame."

"Much better, I believe," said Lady Rossville, with a sigh she did not intend. "London is not the place for either light heads or light purses like mine."

Uncle Adam thought this savoured of an attack upon his hoards, and he resented it accordingly." Ay, light heads mak light purses, and

it's best they should keep company wi' ane anither."

Lady Rossville only smiled at this rebuff, then said, "Well, as you don't seem to make my light head and my light purse very welcome, here is a light heart that I hope will please you better," pointing to Anne, whose happy, blooming face, and little simply dressed figure, formed quite a contrast to the Countess's pale complexion, dissatisfied expression, and elegant, but fanciful style of dress.

"Oo ay, sweet hearts are aye light hearts; but maybe that's ower light a word for you and your dominie. I dinna ken what you religious folk ca' yoursel's. Hae ye ony godly name that you carry on your courtships wi' ?”

Poor Anne blushed, as she answered, in some confusion, that her uncle might call her what he pleased.

"And if I should ca' you twa great fules?" demanded he.

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Perhaps you will only call us by our right names," said Anne, with a smile.

There's some modesty at least in that," said

uncle Adam more benignly; "but what did you

mean by carrying on this hiddlin' coortship o' yours sae lang? I never heard a word o't till I heard it frae your father last week."

"I thought it unnecessary to trouble you upon a subject which did not interest you," said Anne.

"How did you ken whether it would interesst me or no? I suppose if I had had a kirk in my aught, you wad hae thought it very interesstin'." Then as his attention was attracted to the carriage moving forward, "That's a fine ootset for a minister's wife, or else no, to be riding up and down the country in a phyeton and fower, and her twa flunkies !"-But at that moment the Waddell carriage took the place of the Rossville one, and Mrs Major herself appeared in all her pomp and bustle." This is very hard," muttered Mr Ramsay, as he turned to and fro, that I canna ca' my hooss my ain."

But Mrs Major now entered in a very slow, solemn, interesting manner; and, as if much fatigued by the exertion of walking from her carriage to the house, she seated herself immediately on her entrance, and then held out her hand, first to uncle Adam, who would not take it, next

to Lady Rossville, with an affectionate shake, and, lastly, to Anne, whom she scarcely touched.

"This is the second time I have been out," said she, speaking in a languid, affected tone, and applying a smelling-bottle to her nose; " and I feel quite fatigued with the exertion of walking from the carriage here."

"I am sorry to hear you have been unwell," said Lady Rossville; "nothing serious, I hope ?" "Good gracious, Lady Rossville !" exclaimed Mrs Waddell, roused into energy, "have you forgot that I have been confined ?"

"O-I-I beg pardon," said Gertrude, as some confused notion darted across her brain of having heard of some such event when in London.

"The Major announced it to Mrs St Clair, I know," said the lady.

"Yes-very true-I had forgot, but I —" "And you must have seen it in the papers→→→→→ I know the Major sent it to all the papers." "He had very little to do," observed uncle Adam.

"What paper do you get ?" demanded Mrs

Major, determined to dive to the bottom of this

mystery.

"I seldom read any but the Morning Post." "And was it not there ?"

"Perhaps very likely-I dare say it was

"You know, if it had been there, you must have seen it, and it wasn't a thing to overlook. I must let the Major know that, and have it inquired into. I know he sent it to every one of the papers-I know that perfectly."

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Lady Rossville now thought she recollected Mrs St Clair mentioning an heir to the race of Waddells; and, by way of atoning for her lapse, she said, "I hope your little boy is quite well?" Boy!" exclaimed the still more exasperated lady; it happens to be a girl! and, I assure you, the Major and I were much better pleased -we were both very anxious for a girl-for, although, where there is a title in the family, it is natural to wish for a son, yet we both think it is of the greatest consequence the eldest should be a girl, so it was a great gratification to us-it was just what we wanted."

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Very true-I beg your pardon."