Katey, blushing and proud, and in a
whirl of delight, walked up and down, and
showed herself in every light and pose.

"You might go to the Castle," said
Peter again. "You'd top the whole fair,
my sweet."

At this moment some one entered, and
started at the curious scene, the candles
lighted, some on the floor, the closed
shutters, and Katey, radiant in her magnificence,
in the centre.

"I beg pardon," the visitor stammered.
"I came——"

It was very awkward.

"Oh, come in, sir. You can look at the
show as well as another." It was young
Tom Clarke, whom they had not seen for a
long time.

"Can we do anything for you?" went on
the Doctor.

"No," he answered. "I only came to
wish you all good-bye.  I am going away
in the morning."

"Going away?" said Katey.

"Yes, going to India. My father's friends
have found me a good place out there. I
shall make my fortune, and be a rich man,
I am told."

"Then no one, Tom Clarke," the Doctor
said, fervently, "could wish you better than
we do, nor than Katey there does. She
can forgive and forget, my dear boy, from
her gentle soul, as we all do. The dead
past may be his own grave-digger, with all
my heart."

"Forget! I have no doubt she can,"
the young man answered. "I see the
meaning of this finery. It's as plain as if
it was written in large capitals. This is
part of the consideration, I suppose?"

"Consideration, sir! This is more of it,
sir!" burst out the Doctor, in a fury.
"Who asked you to intrude here, with
your insults? My child, don't heed him,
don't mind him. He's shown himself now
in his true colours."

"God forgive him for his injustice,
Peter," said Katey, looking like the Queen
of England, as she drew herself up, oh!
so stately and magnificent. The pride of
the Findlaters was, indeed, there. "God
forgive him, Peter, for insulting me and
you; and he has helped me never to think
of him more."

"Now, there's your sentence and quietus,'
said the Doctor. "Katey, the creature, to
be accused—and by you, sir—of selling
herself for a rag of a dress! Put that with
the rest— the other charge of playing a
double part."

"If I have said what was offensive, I ask
her pardon," he answered, humbly; "but
it has all gone too far to be mended now:
anything I could say or do would not help
the matter. But I do hope it will all end
for the best, and that you will find this plan
of yours, Doctor Findlater, end happily.
It has begun by wrecking my happiness,
and I hope——"

"Oh, leave all this, sir. It's like the
Pharisee women, who 'trust that you'll
never repent it,' praying all the time that
you will. Well, good-bye, sir." And the
young man, bowing sadly, withdrew without
a single word.

The Doctor did not give his Katey time
for compunction, but instantly burst into a
warm and furious protest against the young
man: "Well, did you ever see anything
like that? It's appalling! Did you ever
see anything like the organised hypocrisy
of that man? The man's heart has turned
black."

The flutter and excitement of that day
were such, they had not time for much
emotion, and Katey, now a lay figure in the
hands of her family, was dressed and
decorated a dozen times over. Captain
Montague, now an intimate friend of the family,
came in and stayed hours, criticising these
costumes in the most good-natured way;
and his taste was certainly of great use in
tempering the rather gaudy and florid
tendencies of the family. Oh, it was a
proud and a happy day! Already Polly
was beginning to speculate on the chances
of a double marriage on the same morning.

"Mary, the daughter of Peter Findlater,
Esq., M.D., of—— "  That was rather a
difficulty, and she thought the hazy
generality of the County Cork preferable to the
more particular Tilston. The notice would
go on, of course: "And at the same place,
and on the same day, Catherine, eldest
daughter," &c. Then the bridegrooms.
"To Percy Montague, second son of the
Honourable William and Lady Mary
Montague, of Dallish Hall."  The other, "To
Cecil, only son." The fluttering, and bustle,
and glitter of the new dresses seemed to
bring that happy day before her very
vividly.

The Doctor was shut up a good deal in
his cabinet, where he sat secluded, his feet
separated and perched on the hob, his chest
and head sunk down in the arm-chair, and
his text-books beside him. The text-books
were a cheerful tumbler and a cigar. He
felt it was all before him, and that night
he was determined to burst on the enemy's