It was, of course, her own settled opinion that her uncle ought to leave that box with her and Isaac; and it had wounded her vanity, and her affection besides, that John had never yet made any such proposal, though she knew--as, indeed, the village knew--that he was perplexed as to what to do with his hoard. But she had never dared to suggest that he should leave it with her, out of fear of Eliza Bolderfield. Bessie was well aware that Eliza thought ill of her and would dissuade John from any such arrangement if she could. And so formidable was Eliza--a woman of the hardest and sourest virtue--when she chose, that Bessie was afraid of her, even on her death-bed, though generally ready enough to quarrel with other people. Nevertheless, Bessie had always felt that it would be a crying shame and slight if she and Isaac did not have the guardianship of the money. She thirsted, perhaps, to make an impression upon public opinion in the village, which, as she instinctively realised, held her cheaply. And then, of course, there was the secret thought of John's death and what might come of it. John had always loudly proclaimed that he meant to spend his money, and not leave it behind him. But the instinct of saving, once formed, is strong. John, too, might die sooner than he thought--and she and Isaac had children. She had come up, indeed, that afternoon, haunted by a passionate desire to get the money into her hands; yet the mere sordidness of 'expectations' counted for less in the matter than one would suppose. Vanity, a vague wish to ingratiate herself with her uncle, to avoid a slight--these were, on the whole, her strongest motives. At any rate, when he had once asked her the momentous question, she knew well what to say to him. 'Well, if you arst me,' she said hastily, 'of course _we_ think as it's only nateral you should leave it with Isaac an me, as is your own kith and kin. But we wasn't goin to say nothin; we didn't want to be pushin of ourselves forward.' John rose to his feet. He was in his shirt-sleeves, which were rolled up. He pulled them down, put on his coat, an air of crisis on his fat face. 'Where 'ud you put it?' he said. 'Yer know that cupboard by the top of the stairs? It 'ud stand there easy. And the cupboard's got a good lock to it; but we'd 'ave it seen to, to make sure.' She looked up at him eagerly. She longed to feel herself trusted and important. Her self-love was too often mortified in these respects. John fumbled round his neck for the bit of black cord on which he kept two keys--the key of his room while he was away, and the key of the box itself. 'Well, let's get done with it,' he said. 'I'm off to-morrer mornin, six o'clock. You go and get Isaac to come down.' 'I'll run,' said Bessie, catching up her shawl and throwing it over her head. 'He wor just finishin his tea.'