"Of course he is married! A bachelor would never dare to take a house like the Grange. It would be downright wicked! He is a married man, with a grey beard, and a fat wife, and four beauteous daughters. I see them now before me, as in a mirror!" Kitty shut her eyes behind the spectacles, and screwed up her face into a grimace which was meant to be vague and visionary, but fell a long way short of success. She was fond of indulging in flights of fancy, and her friends waited for her utterances with smiling delight. "Yes, yes, I see them all! Veronique, the eldest, is a stately beauty, tall and slender, with lustrous Spanish eyes, and locks--" "Black as the raven's wing." Chrissie's murmur seemed a fitting climax to the description, but the Visionary objected to be interrupted, and turning scornful eyes upon her, said icily-- "Quite the contrary. Bright as pure gold! She knows not the meaning of fear, and rides an Arab charger, who knows every movement of her mistress's hand. She is betrothed to the scion of a noble house, and will shortly be led to the hymeneal altar, when we shall attend as maids of honour, clad in the sheen of satin and glimmer of pearls. Gabriella, the second, is _mignonne_ in stature, with a wee, winsome face--" But at this point in the description Agatha spluttered with laughter, and Christabel rose from her seat, and began banging down books on the table with disdainful emphasis. "I refuse to listen any longer to such uttah rubbish."--"Wee, winsome face," repeated Kitty loudly, determined to finish the sentence or perish in the attempt. "Eyes blue as the summer skies, and a skin of snow and roses. She has a timorous, shrinking nature, and prefers a milk-white charger to her sister's untamed steed. Evangeline, the third, has tawny locks and a dimpling smile, and makes up by charm of manner for what she lacks in regular beauty. Valentine, the fourth--" But the characteristics of Miss Vanburgh number four were fated to remain in obscurity, for at that moment a step was heard approaching the schoolroom door, and the historian made a dash forward to collect her books, and place them on the table, before the entrance of Miss Roberts, the governess. CHAPTER FIVE. AN UNEXPECTED VISITOR. During the next few weeks the workmen took possession of the Grange, and each morning as Kit made her appearance in the schoolroom Christabel had some fresh item of intelligence to unfold. "A blue paper is going up in the bedroom--pale, pale blue, with loops of roses tied with lovers' knots--s-imply sweet! ... Nothing but brown paper in the little room over the door--nasty, common brown paper like you use for parcels. Hideous! What can they be thinking of?"--and the girls would stare together through the windows, watching every movement of painters and paperers with breathless interest.