as Martha had given me the note, "with Miss
Pole's kind regards," it needed no wizard to
find out who sent it, and if the writer's name
was to be kept secret, it was very well that I
was alone when Martha delivered it.

I went, as requested, to Miss Pole's. The
door was opened to me by her little maid
Lizzy, in Sunday trim, as if some grand event
was impending over this work-day. And the
drawing-room upstairs was arranged in
accordance with this idea. The table was set
out, with the best green card cloth and
writing-materials upon it. On the little
chiffonier was a tray with a newly-decanted
bottle of cowslip wine, and some
ladies'-finger biscuits. Miss Pole herself was in
solemn array, as if to receive visitors,
although it was only eleven o'clock. Mrs.
Forrester was there, crying quietly and
sadly, and my arrival seemed only to call
forth fresh tears. Before we had finished our
greetings, performed with lugubrious mystery
of demeanour, there was another rat-tat-tat,
and Mrs. Fitz-Adam appeared crimson with
walking and excitement. It seemed as if
this was all the company expected; for now
Miss Pole made several demonstrations of
being about to open the business of the
meeting, by stirring the fire, opening and
shutting the door, and coughing and blowing
her nose. Then she arranged us all round
the table, taking care to place me opposite
to her; and last of all, she inquired of me,
if the sad report was true, as she feared
it was, that Miss Matey had lost all her
fortune?

Of course, I had but one answer to make;
and I never saw more unaffected sorrow
depicted on any countenances, than I did
there on the three before me.

"I wish Mrs. Jamieson was here  " said
Mrs. Forrester at last; but to judge from
Mrs. Fitz-Adam's face, she could not second
the wish.

"But without Mrs. Jamieson," said Miss
Pole, with just a sound of offended merit in
her voice, "we, the ladies of Cranford, in my
drawing-room assembled, can resolve upon
something. I imagine we are none of us
what may be called rich, though we all
possess a genteel competency, sufficient for tastes
that are elegant and refined, and would not,
if they could, be vulgarly ostentatious."
(Here I observed Miss Pole refer to a small
card concealed in her hand, on which I
imagine she had put down a few notes.)

"Miss Smith," she continued, addressing
me, (familiarly known as "Mary" to all the
company assembled, but this was a state
occasion,) "I have conversed in private—I
made it my business to do so yesterday
afternoon—with these ladies on the
misfortune which has happened to our friend,—
and one and all of us have agreed that, while
we have a superfluity, it is not only a duty
but a pleasure, a true pleasure, Mary!"—
her voice was rather choked just here, and
she had to wipe her spectacles before she
could go on—"to give what we can to assist
her—Miss Matilda Jenkyns. Only, in
consideration of the feelings of delicate
independence existing in the mind of every
refined female,"—I was sure she had got back
to the card now "—we wish to contribute our
mites in a secret and concealed manner, so as
not to hurt the feelings I have referred to.
And our object in requesting you to meet us
this morning, is, that believing you are the
daughter—that your father is, in fact, her
confidential adviser in all pecuniary matters,
we imagined that, by consulting with him,
you might devise some mode in which our
contribution could be made to appear the
legal due which Miss Matilda Jenkyus ought
to receive from———. Probably your father,
knowing her investments, can fill up the
blank."

Miss Pole concluded her address, and looked
round for approval and agreement.

"I have expressed your meaning, ladies,
have I not? And while Miss Smith considers
what reply to make, allow me to offer you
some little refreshment."

I had no great reply to make; I had more
thankfulness at my heart for their kind
thoughts than I cared to put into words;
and so I only mumbled out something to the
effect "that I would name what Miss Pole
had said to my father, and that if anything
could be arranged for dear Miss Matey,"—
and here I broke down utterly, and had to
be refreshed with a glass of cowslip wine
before I could check the crying which had
been recessed for the last two or three days.
The worst was, all the ladies cried in concert.
Even Miss Pole cried, who had said a
hundred times that to betray emotion before any
one was a sign of weakness and want of
selfcontrol. She recovered herself into a slight
degree of impatient anger, directed against
me, as having set them all off; and, moreover,
I think she was vexed that I could not make
a speech back in return for hers; and if I had
known beforehand what was to be said, and
had had a card on which to express the
probable feelings that would rise in my heart, I
would have tried to gratify her. As it was,
Mrs. Forrester was the person to speak when
we had recovered our composure. "I don't
mind, among friends, stating that I—no! I'm
not poor exactly, but I don't think I'm what
you may call rich; I wish I were, for dear
Miss Matey's sake,—but, if you please, I'll
write down, in a sealed paper, what I can
give. I only wish it was more: my dear
Mary, I do indeed."

Now I saw why paper, pens, and ink, were
provided. Every lady wrote down the sum
she could give annually, signed the paper,
and sealed it mysteriously. If their proposal
was acceded to, my father was to be allowed
to open the papers, under pledge of seeresy.
If not, they were to be returned to their
writers. When, this ceremony had been gone