Children -- Death -- Juvenile fiction; Conduct of life -- Juvenile fiction; Farm life -- Juvenile fiction; Siblings -- Juvenile fiction
"Let's go, Lizzie," said her cousin. "Will you take me too,
Mr. Brick? -- Mr. Satterthwaite, I mean."
Mr. Satterthwaite declared himself honoured, prospectively;
Elizabeth put no objection of her own in the way; and the
scheme was agreed on.
The morrow came, and at the proper hour the trio repaired to
the City Hall and mounted its high white steps.
"Don't you feel afraid, Lizzie, to be coming here?" said her
cousin. "I do."
"Afraid of what, Mrs. Haye?" inquired their attendant.
"O I don't know, -- it looks so; -- it makes me think of
prisoners and judges and all such awful things!"
Mr. Satterthwaite laughed, and stole a glance beyond Mrs. Haye
to see what the other lady was thinking of. But Elizabeth said
nothing and looked nothing; she marched on like an automaton
beside her two companions, through the great halls, one after
another, till the room was reached and they had secured their
seats. Then certainly no one who had looked at her face would
have taken it for an automaton. Though she was as still as a
piece of machine-work, except the face. Rose was in a fidget
of business, and the tip of her bonnet's white feather
executed all manner of arcs and curves in the air, within
imminent distance of Mr. Satterthwaite's face.
"Who's who? -- and where's anybody, Mr. Satterthwaite," she
inquired.
"That's the Chancellor, sitting up there at the end, do you
see? -- Sitting alone, and leaning back in his chair."
"_That?_" said Rose. "I see. Is that Chancellor Justice? A fine-
looking man, very, isn't he?"
"Well -- I suppose he is," said Mr. Satterthwaite. "He's a
_strong_ man."
"Strong?" said Rose; -- "is he? Lizzie! -- isn't Chancellor
Justice a fine-looking man?"
"Fine-looking?" -- said Elizabeth, bringing her eyes in the
Chancellor's direction. "No, I should think not."
"Is there _anybody_ that is fine-looking here?" whispered Rose
in Elizabeth's bonnet.
"Our tastes are so different, it is impossible for one to tell
what will please the other," replied Elizabeth coolly.
"Where's Mr. Landholm, Mr. Satterthwaite?"
"Winthrop? -- He is down there -- don't you see him?"
"'Down there?'" said Rose, -- "There are a great many people
down there --"
"There's Mr. Herder shaking hands with him now --"
"Mr. Herder? -- Lizzie, do you see them?"
"Who?"
"Winthrop Landholm and Mr. Herder."
"Yes."
"Where are they?"
"Hush --"
For just then proceedings began, and Rose's tongue for a few
minutes gave way in favour of her ears. And by the time she
had found out that she could not make anything of what was
going on, Mr. Herder had found his way to their side.
"Miss Elisabet'!" he said, -- "and Mistress Haye! what has made
you to come here to-day?"
"Mr. Satterthwaite wanted us to hear your favourite Mr.
Landholm," said Rose, -- "so I came. Lizzie didn't come for
that."
Elizabeth shook hands with her friend smilingly, but said
never a word as to why she was there.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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