Mr Hogarths Will | Page 8

a penniless wife and a penniless
sister-in-law."
"He is not mercenary--I am sure he is not," said Elsie with animation.
"Perhaps he is not positively mercenary; but after all am I worthy of the
sacrifice? Look at me, Elsie; even your sisterly partiality cannot make a
beauty of me. My turn of mind is not suited to his; I have always felt
that; and, above all, I am not very fond of him."
"Not very!"

"No; I have liked him a good deal; but now in this crisis, when we have
to begin life in earnest--when I am puzzling myself how to find food
and clothing and shelter for you and me--I feel as if Mr. Dalzell's past
attentions belonged to another world altogether, so I am putting them
aside completely."
"Ah! but Jane, only listen to me. If he were to come now, and lay
himself and all that he has at your feet, that would prove that he was no
fortune-hunter, but a real true lover, as I always believed him to be."
"He will not do it," said Jane, quietly; and she now began to make some
memoranda.
"We have no ornaments, Elsie," said she, sadly.
"No; I never heard you regret the want of them before."
"I should like to have something to sell. Emilia Chalmers has 200
pounds worth of jewellery, most of it left by her aunt. If we had so
much, we might convert it into money, and might stock a little shop."
"A shop!" said Elsie, shuddering.
"Why not? One is more independent keeping a shop than in a
governess's situation, and there my business knowledge would be of
use. It is wrong and absurd to have a terror of a shop."
"I cannot help feeling a great repugnance to shopkeeping."
"Then would you rather be a governess, supposing you were capable?"
"Oh, Jane, that is such a hard life. I should be separated from you; and
then one is worried by the children, and snubbed by the parents,
sneered at by servants, and ignored by visitors."
"Then dressmaking? You work beautifully."
"The late hours, and the close rooms; do you think I could stand it?"

"I am a little afraid for you," said Jane, thoughtfully. "What would you
like to do?"
"Why, I have never thought of doing anything but being with you,
working a little, reading a little, going out a little, and having nobody
over me but you, my own darling sister. It stuns me to be told that I
must go to work for a livelihood."
"I hope we may be able to live together as you hoped, eventually; but in
the meantime we must both put our shoulders to the wheel."
"Have we no friends who would give us a home--at least for a while,
till we get accustomed to the thought of hard work?" said Elsie.
"We have no relations, and we have made but few friends. I fear no one
would come forward to help us now that we need help so much. It is a
pity that my uncle kept us so much to himself, and that we were so
fully occupied with our own home duties that we had little or no time
for society. Now we have no capital for a start, and no friends to help
us on, only our talents and our education--a small stock-in-trade, I
fear."
In the course of the afternoon the man-servant, James, announced that
Mr. Dalzell was below, and that he sent his compliments and wished to
know how the young ladies were.
It was not the first visit since Mr. Hogarth's death. He had paid a visit
of condolence on the following day, and had never been so affectionate
or impressive in his manner to Jane as on that occasion.
"Show Mr. Dalzell upstairs, James," said Jane; "I think I should like to
see him."
The man looked somewhat intelligent, and obeyed.
"I cannot see anybody--I am not fit to be seen," said Elsie, retreating in
haste from the room; "and indeed, Jane, I wonder at you wishing to see
him so soon after this dreadful news."

"He has been at the funeral, I suppose. It is very proper of him to
inquire for us, and very imperative that we should understand each
other;--the sooner the better. But do not stay if you do not like. I should
prefer to see him alone."
Mr. Dalzell was shown into the darkened drawing-room, where he was
some time in discovering that Miss Melville was alone. A few of the
kind commonplaces which had been so successful on his previous
visit--remarks on the loss she had sustained, on the excellent character
of her deceased uncle, and on the necessity of bearing the blow with
fortitude, which her strong mind was quite