she would soon follow her mother," would have naturally estranged
the families. Now, of this apprehension, above all others, it was the
father's wish that Agnes should remain ignorant; and when she repeated
to him, with tears in her eyes, the merciless purport of her aunt's
observations, he replied, with a degree of calm resentment which was
unusual to him, "Agnes, my love, let not anything your aunt may say
alarm you in the least; she is no prophetess, my dear child. Your life,
as is that of all his creatures, is in the hands of God who gave it. I
know her avaricious and acrimonious disposition--her love of wealth, and
her anxiety to aggrandize her family. As it is, she will live to regret
the day she ever uttered those cruel words to you, my child. You shall
visit at your uncle's no more. Whenever the other members of her
family may please to come here, we shall receive them with kindness and
affection; but I will not suffer you to run the risk of listening to
such unfeeling prognostications in future."

In the meantime her health continued in a state sufficiently
satisfactory to her father. It is true an occasional alarm was felt from
time to time, as a slight cold, accompanied with its hard and unusual
cough, happened to supervene; but in general it soon disappeared, and
in a brief space she became perfectly recovered, and free from every
symptom of the dreadful malady.

In this way the tenor of her pure and innocent life went on, until she
reached her sixteenth year. Never did a happier young creature enjoy
existence--never lived a being more worthy of happiness. Her inseparable
and bosom friend was Alice Goodwin, now her sister according to their
artless compact of love. They spent weeks and months alternately with
each other; but her father never permitted a day to pass without
seeing her, and every visit filled his happy spirit with more hopeful