eggs, and buttered toast, and a small glass dish of sardines, to say
nothing of a few little dishes of different preserves. Mrs. Dredge,
who was considered by the other ladies to have an appetite the reverse
of refined, had, in addition to these slight refreshments, a mutton
chop. This she was eating with appetite and relish, while Miss Slowcum
languidly tapped her egg, and remarked as she did so that it was
hollow, but not more so than life. Mrs. Mortlock, since the
commencement of her affliction, always sat by Mrs. Flint's side, and
when she imagined that her companions were making use of their sight
to some purpose she invariably requested Mrs. Flint to describe to her
what was going on. On this particular evening the whole party were
much excited and impressed by the unexpected return of Poppy, alias
Sarah.

"It took me all of a heap!" said Mrs. Flint; "I really thought the
girl was saucy, and had gone--but never a bit of it. If you'll believe
me, ladies, she came in as humble as you please, and quite willing to
go back to her work in a quiet spirit. 'Sarah,' I said to her in the
morning, 'you'll rue this day,' and she did rue it, and to some
purpose, or she wouldn't have returned so sharp in the evening. She's
a good girl, taking her all in all, is Sarah, and being my own niece,
of course I put up with a few things from her which I would not take
from a stranger."

"She spoke pretty sharp this morning about you, Mrs. Flint, to my
continual reader," said Mrs. Mortlock; "I wouldn't take no airs, if I
was you, from Sarah Maria. Miss Slowcum, I'll trouble you for the
pepper, please. Seeing that I'm afflicted, and cannot now use my
eyesight, I think there might be a little consideration in the small
matter of pepper shown to me, but feel as I will I can find it in no