and determined to do nothing to make life more bearable for any of them.

In response to Kitty's meek efforts to induce her to do her best to make
the supper-table presentable, and not a shame to them all, she refused
point-blank to stir a finger.

"There's meat pasties, and there's a gooseberry tart, and cheese, and
cold plum-pudding, and cake, and butter and jam," she said, enumerating
thing after thing, designed, so it seemed to Kitty, expressly for the
purpose of giving Aunt Pike a nightmare; "and I've got some fish for the
master, that I am going to cook when he comes, and not before."

"O Fanny, do cook it for Aunt Pike, please. It is just the thing for
her, and I am sure father would rather she should have it than that she
should complain that she had nothing to eat--"

"Well, Miss Kitty," burst in Fanny indignantly, "I don't know what _you_
calls nothing. I calls it a-plenty and running over; and if what's good
enough for us all isn't good enough for Mrs. Pike, well--"

"It is _good_ enough, Fanny," urged Kitty; "only, you see, we like it
and can eat it, but Aunt Pike can't. You know the last time she was
here she said everything gave her indigestion--"

"Them folks that is so afflicted," said Fanny, "should stay in their own
'omes, or the 'ospital. I'm sure master don't want patients indoors so
well as out, and be giving up the food out of his own mouth to them.
The bit of fish I've got for master I'm going to keep for master.
If anybody's got to have the indigestion it won't be him, not if I knows
it; he's had nothing to eat to-day yet to speak of, and if nobody else