A Family Affair

M s. Maler, the respect ible muidlo aged widow wbo had, in spite of her lack of propt'rly authenticatc i serv.ce testimoniáis, been insta) ed in he place of the nurse-g rl whosu amorous tendencies fentsuch a ch'll through Hazlcwoo I i ouse, continued to givo the greatest satisfactiou. She was a Ut ng proof that a brojm which swept clean when new, may sometimes do so after the ncwnoss has departed. Aloreover, Mrs Miller was a broom which raised very littledust as jt swept. Her masters liked her, Miss Clauson likod her, the boy likel her and, ab ve all, VVhittaker liked her. This last was an important matter, as in theservants' hall Whittaker. by virtue of long service and irreproachable character reigned supreme. The new nurse as in many ways a servant after bis owu heart. She treatel him with the respeot which was his due, aml neither by word or action rldiculed his masters- the crime oommon in nearly all the retainers of Ha.lewood House. The only fault wh ch Whittaker could t;nd with Mrs M lier was on ac on ut of her rel gious senti metits and it was bu. n itural that in a kindlv paternal w&y Wh:ttaker should take an early opportunity of ascertaining Mrs. Miílor j orthodoxy, He did this in tb butlttr's pantry, whither she had one day come on some errand lt was on a Mondar, and Whittaker egan by commcnting on Mr Mordlo's sermón of the preceding night. He littln guessed what a storm his words would raisc, how by shoer ac cidont he had stumbled on a way of turning this calm-looking woman into a wild enthusiast. Hut he had, in fact, stniok the tire from the flint. Sha forgot all about her errand, and e n U-red Into a religious dUcussion in a way that took ths malp d putnnt's breath from him. Slio talked about selection and predestinaron- the utter ineffioaey of works or 1'aith to save she pounded him witb terrible texts which out otf the hope of merey from all save the elect, untii poor qH Whittaker fairly gasped. His eno sided studies furnished no weapon with whioh to meet her vehement attaek. All he could do was to shake hui bead pityingly and sigh for the state of her mud. In this he was little different from many reputed teachers of men. Suddenly, as if renieinbering where she wai, Mrs. Miller grew calm; but evidently by a great effort of self -control. She even apologized for her exci temen t which she hoped Mr. Whittaker would forget Then she loft him. In his responsible position his first thought was that his masters ought to be informed of the heterodox views held by the nurse. But this seemed scarcelv fair to the woman, who, in spite of all, went to ohurch as regularly as the other servante. So be did not mention the matter to the Talberts, but, overtaking Mr. Mordle as the lattor was one day walking into the tpwn, he, with all respect, toid him wbat strapge ideas Mrs. Miller held on religious subjects "Ah!" said Mordle "Calvinism- dreary religión - most dismal and dreary of all. ' The cúrate was rather short with Whiutakar. Ho thought the old servant rather a nuisance and somewhat of a prig. "Will f ou seo her and talk to her, sir?" asked Whittaker, _respeotfu}ly. "Uo. Calvinista are incurable, But to pleaseyou, Whittker, I'll preacb at her some Sunday." It may be presumed that Mr, Miller dd not inttict her Calvinism upon Beatrice, as tho latter seemed to tind the new nurse perfectly suited to her duties. It was clear that Mrs. Miller had become strangely attached to her young mistress. Kothing seemed to give her such pleasure as performing any small personal service which Miss Clauson required. When Featrioe passed her, the woman' s dark eyes foltowed her with an expression of almost d3g-iik3 afiection. On her part Beatrice troated the nurse with a considera tion not always ibown by the most amiable toward thcir sefvants. ft was vulgarly said among the housphQld that Mrs. Miller, quiet as sio was, had minagel to get the length ot Miss Clauson' s fooi. Whether Mrs. Miller was unduly favored or not, things at Hazlo wood House ran on smoothly. Perhaps it was tho perfect order in which the gaar worked that induced the nurse to take a day'í holidav. It was the day after Mr. Mordle had made and lost his venture. Horace j and Herbert poUering about the gar! dens, saw the bright haired boy going : out in chargo of the parlor-maid. This ! was an infraction of rules which could , not be overlooked. Thev demanded i üjc cause, and were toid that Mrs. VI il'er had gon for a day's bolida}-. Of course the brothers said no more but upon seeing Beatrice they mentioned the matter to her. "Yes," sha said, "I told her she might go for the day." The Talberta were too pol i te to blame Beatrice in words, but a aligbt elevation of four eyebrows sbowed their owners' discontent. Beatrice, in giving a servan t a holiday, had taken a liberty. W"here has she gone?" asked Her! bert, who liked to know that his servants were pending their time properly. "To London, I suppose," said Beatrice, carelessly. Now the way in which Mrs. Miller spent her holiday was as follows: She rose at an early hour and walked from hazle wood House to the eross roads. Here she waitod until the lumbering old fashioned 'buspame ins'ght. She toqk a seat in it and waf in due time deposiled at the Blaoktown station. At Blacktown sh.e took the train to Weymouth which fashionable water-placa be reached about eleven o'clock. It was, however. olear that sh.e had not come here lo enjoy a stay at the seaside. Inste ad of going at once to the gay esplanade, she sought the thadM oí th general walttng-roonahere ihe remained an hour. She thea embarked in nother train; ona that ran on a single line of railwav - lan nearly the whoie of its way witli the sea on one side and a migh'y hill of smooth, rounded pebbles, tnown as the Chesil Beaeh, on the other, while in front of it loowed tall, serrated, preeipitoui elifts. at the foot of whcb was its destination. Airs. MUler paid no attention to the natural seenory of the placo. She stepped frotn thé train and walked out of liie littie station in a motho.liual, inisiii. ss liko way. It was evident that th ■ woman tfcd not come so far on a nier p'easure-jaunt. She ilrovf a bargain aiter the man ncr of her kind then took her seat in l one of the dustv vebicles Slie was drivcu thioügh the littie grav town wli oh 1 '.ei at die foot of, ana s' retenes a long wity up the hill. The norse to.leii up tlie steop streel: on and on unt:l the occupant of the cab looked down on the tops of the houses wh'ch she had ust pa sed. Then a turn, and a bit of Ie el ground, atiother turn and a steep hill so on and on in a 7Jg7.AH course until the table land which lies at the top of ortland slitnd was somehow reauhed. an event which mtist have beei gra'eful al e to the hor e :md to the occupant of the cab, supposintho lalter only possessed of nerves of ordinary strength and therefore apt to rebel airainst being drawn up a h H as steep as tlie side of a house Some time before the cah reached the top of the cli s it had at intervals passed gang of men working by the roads de At a d sta u-e these men looked littie different froni ordnary narvies, but a closer inspection sliowud that the garments of most of them consisted of a d rk yellow jersey covered by a sleaveless jacket of light fust an or -ome such material. Tbis jacket, niorvover, was s'amped in rarious plaoes with the goverument b:cad arrow. Kvey m tn wore gaters and a cur ously ahajed c ip, under which no hair was vsible. üc asiona'ly one mirht be seen who moved with n certain stifness ,n his gait, as if icruething whtoh he wou!d willingly tr.iYi dis pense I w th resUuined the natural eiastieity of his lower limbi. Here and there t ie motiotony of the at lire was broken by the ippcamiice of some who wer dresed in blue in.ste id of veliow but taken altogether the drexs, if comfortable aud enduring, was soa.-cely one which a man being a free agent would choose for himself. The gang whieh Airs. Miller pased on the roadsidu were for the most part engaged in hand ng lumps of turf rom man to man Thêy performed these duties in a listless perfunctory inaiiner althouglt standing on the hill-s do above every band ol workers, were iwo men in long dark roats with the shining buttons of authority, and each of these men held a ritie with xcl bayonet. Further away in the quarr'es could beseen mmy other such gangs, dig ging, delving, hauling, wheeli g barrows, and uerformine other oporations nce:)! . . or extraeting the famed Portland suue fro:u the ground. fter passing various sentries and driving for some riistance along the level ground, Mre M ller's cab resvche 1 a beautiful, tall, buttressed wali: skirting tliis it turned at r'ght angle.-i and very soon drew up before an imposing entrance bu It of aray stone, and liearing over the archway the royal arnis ol Kngland. This was the en tranco to her niajesty's rison of Portland. In front of it, aero.ss the road, stretched the governor' s garden, still brilliant with tlowers, and looking like a glorioud oasis in the midstof a barren land. A nian who in the discharge of his iluiies bas tQ Hye on the top of Portland 'sland wants a garden or something pf that sort Without it the monotony of thp place wquld drive hm niad t ut Vrs, Miller 4icJ pot eren look at the gay beds She dismounted, and after telling the cabman to wait for her walked boldly through the prison-gate. She was immediately accosted by a portly, good-unnpered lookiug janitor, whose gold-laced cap spoke of superior standing. He ushered her into a littie waiting-rooiu just inside the gate, and asked her to state her business. Mrs. Miller's business was to see one of the convicta, by name Maurice Harvey. Now, convicta are only allowed to see thoT friends once in six months: so the janitor shook his head dubiously. Still, as Mrs. Miller was a most respectable looking woman, he said he would mention the matter to the governor. He begged the lady to take a chair and then leu hor. After a while the gppdnatured janitor returned. He told Mrs. Miller that the oocrlot had not geen a friend for many months, so upon his return from work he woild bo asked'if he would like to see her. She must give her name. She wrote it down; then waited patiently. By and by there was a measured tramp of many heavy f eet, and she knew the conviots were retuming to dinner. After the tramp had diea away. a warder made his appearance and "told her to follow him . It was but a step. He pueueda door in tbe raf of the waiting room, ancj Mrs, Miller fouod herselt jn a p}aca which couhi suggest uithing else than a den at a zoological -arden, ono side of the room bcing forioed of iron bars about six inches apart. And opposite was a similar den with its front turned toward it and entered by another door, and between the two was a space, a narrow den, eutered by another door and coutnining a stool. Presently the door of the muidle den opened r nd a warder entered and soated himself upon the stool, then the furthest door opened, and one of the blue-habited convicta walked up to tbo bar and gave his visitor a nod of careless recognifwn. Wjib th.ese two fihere was no weeping, no stfetching o.ujt of hands, in facl, as Mrs. Mi Ier looked at the caged oreature in front of her an expression very nearlv akin to hatred settled on her strongfy marked features. Yet, in ■pit of his closely-olipped crown, shaven cheeks and ugly attire, the convict was by no means ill-looking. His features were straight, ut migbt even hare been called retined. Ho was above the middle height, broadshouldered and healthy-looking. His teeth wpre good, and his hands, although' rough and hardened with tflil, were not the hands oí one who has labóred from his childhqod. His eyes had a cruel, er aft y look in them; but this look might have been acquired sinca bis iqcarceratiQn. Indeed, Mrs. Miller had noticed the samp expression in the eyes of erery coorict whom shjo had met on the way to the prison. Mrs. Miller looked through her bars at the convict; the convict looked through his bars at Mrs. Miller; tbe warden between them sat on his stool sublimely indifferent, and for awhile there was silence. The convict was the first to break it. "Oh, it's you, isit?" he said. "Yes, it's me," said Mrs. MUler. "Well, what do you want? To e how I am getting on?" He spoke quite jauntily. His visitor ga.ed at him scornfully. "Oh, I'm in splendid health," he oontinued. "Physically, I'm twice the man 1 was when I carne here. Regular hours, regular 'meáis, regular work. Constitntion qnite set up. No chance of my dying before my term'sup." "So, I'm afraid there isa't," said Mrs. Miller with suoh bittêrness that the impassive warder glancód at her wonderiag wnat manner of prisoner's friend tbis w#'. [to ma coktixuxsJ