of a merry-hearted girl of thirteen brings to a hitherto silent house.
Of him Rosamond stood considerably in awe, and though she could
willingly have worshipped him for giving her so pleasant a home, she
felt afraid of him and kept out of his way, watching him with childish
curiosity at a distance, admiring his noble figure, and wondering if
she would ever dare speak to him as fearlessly as Mrs. Peters did.

From this woman Rosamond received all a mother's care, and though the
name of her lost parent was often on her lips, she was beginning to be
very happy in her new home, when one day toward the middle of October
Mrs. Peters told her that Mr. Browning's only sister, a Mrs. Van
Vechten, who lived South, was coming to Riverside, together with her
son Ben. The lady Mrs. Peters had never seen, but Ben, who was at
school in Albany, had spent a vacation there, and she described him as
a "great, good-natured fool," who cared for nothing but dogs, cigars,
fast horses and pretty girls.

Rosamond pushed back the stray curls which had fallen over her face,
glanced at the cracked mirror which gave her _two_ noses instead of
one, and thinking to herself, "I wonder if he'll care for me,"
listened attentively while Mrs. Peters continued,--"This Miss Van
Vechten is a mighty fine lady, they say, and has heaps of niggers to
wait on her at home,--but she can't bring 'em here, for _I_ should set
'em free--that's, so. I don't b'lieve in't. What was I sayin'? Oh, I
know, she can't wait on herself, and wrote to have her brother get
some one. He asked me if you'd be willin' to put on her clothes, wash
her face, and _chaw her victuals_ like enough."

"Mr. Browning never said that," interrupted Rosamond, and Mrs. Peters
replied--"Well, not that exactly, but he wants you to wait on her