had been to spare Fanny, and she had been scarcely made aware of the
danger, and not allowed to witness the suffering. The chivalrous old
man who had taken on himself the charge of her, still regarded the
young mother of his children as almost as much of a baby herself, and
devoted himself all the more to sparing her trouble, and preventing
her from feeling more thrown upon her by her mother's death. The
notion of training her to act alone never even occurred to him, and
when he was thrown from his horse, and carried into a wayside-hut to
die, his first orders were that no hurried message might be sent to
her, lest she might be startled and injured by the attempt to come to
him. All he could do for her was to leave her in the charge of his
military secretary, who had long been as a son to him. Fanny told
her aunt with loving detail all that she had heard from Major Keith
of the brave old man's calm and resigned end--too full of trust even
to be distressed with alarms for the helpless young wife and
children, but committing them in full reliance to the care of their
Father in heaven, and to the present kindness of the friend who stood
by his pillow.

The will, which not only Rachel but her mother thought strangely
unguarded, had been drawn up in haste, because Sir Stephen's family
had outgrown the provisions of a former one, which had besides
designated her mother, and a friend since dead, as guardians. Haste,
and the conscious want of legal knowledge, had led to its being made
as simple as possible, and as it was, Sir Stephen had scarcely had
the power to sign it.

It was Major Keith who had borne the tidings to the poor little
widow, and had taken the sole care of the boys during the sad weeks
of care utter prostration and illness. Female friends were with her,