England girl, with terrified, childish eyes, and a passionate
devotion to her mistress and all that concerned her mistress. Fanny
had in charge a splendid, tawny-headed little boy of three, who
played happily by himself, about the kitchen door, and chased
chickens and kittens with shrieks of delight. Mrs. Burgoyne spoke of
him as "Fanny's little brother," and if the two had a history of any
sort, it was one at which she never hinted. She met an embarrassing
question with a readiness which rather amused Mrs. Brown, on a day
when the two younger ladies were having tea with Mrs. Apostleman,
and the conversation turned to the subject of maids.

"--but if your little girl Fanny has had her lesson, you'll have no
trouble keepin' her," said Mrs. Apostleman.

"Oh, I hope I shall keep Fanny," said Mrs. Burgoyne, "she comes of
such nice people, and she's such a sweet, good girl."

"Why, Lord save us!" said the old lady, repentantly, "and I was
almost ready to believe the child was hers!"

"If Peter was hers, she couldn't be fonder of him!" Mrs. Burgoyne
said mildly, and Mrs. Brown choked on her tea, and had to wipe her
eyes.

In the matter of Fanny, and in a dozen other small matters, the
independence of the great lady was not slow in showing itself in
Mrs. Burgoyne. Santa Paloma might be annoyed at her, and puzzled by
her, but it had perforce to accept her as she stood, or ignore her,
and she was obviously not a person to ignore. She declined all
invitations for daytime festivities; she was "always busy in the