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CHAPTER 7—GUIDING CHILDREN’S BEHAVIOR

TRUE/FALSE

1. A child development background helps teachers understand and guide children’s behavior.

ANS: T

2. Discipline and guidance are deeply embedded within the values and beliefs of the family.

ANS: T

3. The only way to ensure a safe environment is to have lots of rules governing children’s behavior.

ANS: F

4. Spanking is sometimes the only solution.

ANS: F

5. Negative attention can be an emotional need for some children.

ANS: T

6. Temperament characteristics seem to remain constant as the child grows.

ANS: T

7. Giving children choices confuses them.

ANS: F

8. Self-discipline is related to self-respect.

ANS: T

9. When a teacher has to intervene, it is best to give children a number of explanations about the
situation.

ANS: F

10. Nonverbal guidance techniques are ineffective.

ANS: F

11. You do not need to worry about behavior problems with children during transition times.

ANS: F
 © 2014 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
12. Comparing children’s behavior will foster self-esteem.

ANS: F

13. Teachers should ignore a child’s behavior just because he or she is “going through a stage.”

ANS: F

14. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends spanking as an effective guidance tool.

ANS: F

15. The timing and daily schedule of events can influence children’s behavior.

ANS: T

16. The environment can be used as a guidance tool.

ANS: T

17. Setting and maintaining limits comes easily to people who teach.

ANS: F

18. Indirect suggestions do not usually work with young children.

ANS: F

19. Culturally sensitive teaching practices recognize the parent’s perspective and the child’s family
experiences.

ANS: T

20. Active listening is universally practiced throughout most cultures.

ANS: F

MULTIPLE CHOICE

1. Spanking should be used ____.

a. for children under 6 years of age c. only in extreme circumstances
b. when parents request you to do it d. never
ANS: D

2. When children of different age levels play together, ____.

a. the older children get to be in charge
b. you should treat all children the same
c. developmental factors must be considered
d. the young children are responsible for their behavior
ANS: C

TB-80
 © 2014 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

3. Redirecting the activity ____.

a. is a useful technique for toddlers c. reinforces the child’s misbehavior
b. means to substitute another activity d. does not involve children in the process
ANS: A

4. When a child is consistently late for snacks, the most appropriate guidance technique is ____.
a. ignore c. active listening
b. time out d. natural consequences
ANS: D

5. When setting limits, ____.

a. consider the child’s abilities c. reset limits if the child gets upset
b. be ready to accept the consequences d. All of these are correct.
ANS: B

6. Environmental factors that influence children’s behavior include ____.

a. the building and grounds
b. the timing and scheduling
c. the toys and materials
d. the teachers and children
e. All of these are correct.
ANS: E

7. Children will thrive in a situation ____.

a. with a lot of rules
b. where they are reminded often of their misbehavior
c. with long-term consequences for misbehavior
d. where they can learn to solve their own conflicts
ANS: D

8. Positive environmental factors that influence children’s behavior is ____.

a. enough time for unhurried play c. low, open cabinets
b. leisurely clean-up d. All of these are correct.
ANS: D

9. Which of the following traits was NOT used to classify the temperament of babies (Thomas and
Chess)?
a. child’s activity level c. ability to adapt to change
b. mother’s activity level d. ease of distraction
ANS: B

10. Punishment ____.

a. defeats self-esteem c. is an ongoing process
b. shapes behavior d. sets an example to follow
ANS: A

TB-81
 © 2014 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
11. Guidance ____.
a. is positive c. leads to self-control
b. learning the difference between acceptable d. fosters a child’s thinking ability
and unacceptable behavior
ANS: B

12. Giving children choices is an effective guidance strategy. Choices should be ____.
a. given when you will accept their choice
b. made with the adult’s preference having priority
c. given only on special occasions
d. given as only one choice, never two
ANS: A

13. Making positive suggestions is a good strategy. Which answer is NOT a good example?
a. “Walk around the edge of the swing so you won’t get hit.”
b. “Good job. You worked hard on that puzzle. Want to try another?”
c. “Don’t climb there. You’ll be hurt.”
d. “Move the chair and you’ll have more room to dance.”
ANS: C

14. The language of guidance does NOT include ____.

a. tone and level of voice c. facial expression
b. actual words d. age
ANS: D

15. A goal of guidance is _____.

a. self-regulation c. making children behave
b. punishment d. overcorrecting children
ANS: A

16. The language of guidance includes _____.

a. using a calm, clear voice c. voicing your opinion
b. telling children what to do d. threatening children with a spanking
ANS: A

17. Active listening involves _____.

a. listening and reflecting with "I" messages
b. encouraging activities
c. being direct
d. avoiding temper tantrums
ANS: A

TB-82
 © 2014 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
18. A natural consequence involves _____.
a. experiencing the natural result of a behavior
b. warning the child first, then using punishment
c. removing the child from the group when he or she becomes boisterous
d. using time out consistently
ANS: A

19. The ______________is a powerful tool in controlling children’s behavior.

a. punishment c. social reinforcer
b. positive reinforcer d. negative reinforcer
ANS: C

20. One goal of positive guidance is _____.

a. dependence c. conflict
b. self-discipline d. None of these answers.
ANS: B

21. The word discipline comes from _____.

a. disciple c. planner
b. teacher d. All of these answers.
ANS: A

22. Limits are _____.

a. guides c. boundaries
b. rules d. All of these answers.
ANS: C

23. A good technique to use with infants and toddlers is _____.

a. isolation c. punishment
b. redirection d. explanation
ANS: B

24. Taking children away from the play area and allowing them the opportunity to calm down is called
_____.
a. isolation c. punishment
b. redirection d. explanation
ANS: A

25. The goal of a good guidance process is _____.

a. dependence c. creativity
b. responsibility d. submission
ANS: B

TB-83
 © 2014 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
26. Developmental guidelines help teachers maintain reasonable _____.
a. expectations c. curriculum goals
b. communication d. teaching objectives
ANS: A

27. The adult has a critical role to play when using the ________ technique, which guides children toward
solutions but doesn’t solve problems for them.
a. guidance c. distraction
b. active problem solving d. None of these are correct.
ANS: B

28. Discipline and guidance are deeply embedded within the values and beliefs of the child’s _____.
a. classroom
b. self
c. culture
d. family
e. culture and family
ANS: E

MATCHING

Match the guidance strategy with the child’s behavior.

a. Cries when told “no” c. Has temper tantrums, cries, screams
b. Is a follower d. High level of cooperation
1. Support child with your presence while gently setting limits.
2. Have mixed-age groupings.
3. Support child in making choices.
4. Use simple, short statements.

1. ANS: C
2. ANS: D
3. ANS: B
4. ANS: A

Match the guideline for setting limits with the appropriate example.
a. Match the limit to the situation. c. Act with authority.
b. Limits should be consistent. d. Maintain the limit.
5. “I’m sorry, Sarah; you can’t play here right now. Remember, you hit Jorge with a block a few minutes
ago.”
6. “I can’t let you hurt other children. Put the block down.”
7. “Miguel, get down from the table and sit in the chair until you finish eating.”
8. “Rosa, remember everyone walks inside; you may run when we get outdoors.”

5. ANS: D
6. ANS: C
7. ANS: A
8. ANS: B

TB-84
 © 2014 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

Match the suggested action with the possible behavior.

a. Indirect suggestions d. Ignoring
b. Change room arrangement e. Active listening
c. Provide a choice f. Natural consequences
9. Dawdling, late for snacks
9. ANS: F
10. Pushing, crowding
10. ANS: B
11. Whining
11. ANS: D
12. Refusing to cooperate
12. ANS: C
13. Daydreaming, not on task
13. ANS: A
14. Arguing
14. ANS: E

Match the effective guidance factor to the question.

a. Child
b. Adult
c. Circumstance

15. What is happening? 15. ANS: C

16. Where is this taking place? 16. ANS: C
17. Who am I? 17. ANS: A
18. What is my role and relationship to the 18. ANS: B
child? 19. ANS: B
19. What is my role in relationship to the 20. ANS: A
group?
20. Who is my family?

Match the factors that affect behavior with the definition.

a. developmental
b. environmental
c. individual
d. emotional and social
e. cultural

21. indirectly influences behavior 21. ANS: B

22. be aware of developmental theory 22. ANS: A
23. temperamental characteristic 23. ANS: C
24. need to feel loved and cared for 24. ANS: D
25. find satisfying ways to cope 25. ANS: D
26. see behavior as predictable 26. ANS: A
27. unparalleled diversity 27. ANS: E
28. continual cross-cultural interactions 28. ANS: E
29. nonverbal or indirect actions 29. ANS: D
30. how to act in that space 30. ANS: B

TB-85
 © 2014 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
Match the positive behavior to the question.
a. time
b. program planning and curriculum
c. organization and order
d. personnel

31. Are the cabinets marked in some way?

32. Does the room arrangement avoid runways?
33. Is cleanup a leisurely process?
34. Are the teachers experienced?
35. Is there enough to do?
36. Are there activities to help the children release tension?
37. Do adults consistently enforce the rules?
38. Does the schedule provide for unhurried play?

31. ANS: C
32. ANS: C
33. ANS: A
34. ANS: D
35. ANS: B
36. ANS: B
37. ANS: D
38. ANS: A

Match the child’s behavior to the guidance strategy.

a. child is encouraged to negotiate
b. child is expected to obey
c. child learns that the family comes first
d. child’s behavior reflects family honor
e. Child is allowed to cry
f. Child learns to respect authority
g. Child has freedom to explore consequences
h. Child is scolded

39. Recognize that family matters may take precedence over school
40. Accept child’s crying as you give comfort
41. Offer real choices
42. Don’t insist on eye contact
43. Model desired behavior
44. Use a sense of humor
45. Share achievements with parents
46. Child may be passive if disciplined harshly

39. ANS: C
40. ANS: E
41. ANS: A
42. ANS: B
43. ANS: H
44. ANS: F
45. ANS: D
46. ANS: G

TB-86
 © 2014 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
SHORT ANSWER

1. What are five ways to help children maintain positive behavior patterns?

ANS:
• Recognize and label the situation–acknowledge the difficulties it presents to the children
• Ask children for their help–get them involved in working out the solutions
• Assign a job or task to the children who are most likely to react to the crisis–please help
Johnny clean-up
• Always be prepared with a story to tell, song to sing, guessing games to play, exercises to do–
help the children pass the time in an appropriate way modeled by the teacher
• Say what you would like to have happen–admit what you wish you could do to correct the
situation

2. Discuss the differences between positive guidance and punishment.

ANS:
Punishment emphasizes what children should not do, is negative, undermines a child’s independence,
is an adult release, thinks for the child, defeats self-esteem, and condemns misbehavior. On the other
hand, positive discipline emphasizes what the child should do, is positive, leads to self-control, helps
the child change, fosters children’s ability to think, bolsters self-esteem, and shapes behavior.
Punishment is often a one-time occurrence while discipline is an ongoing process.

3. What does developmentally appropriate guidance mean?

ANS:
It means taking child development principles into account when responding to children’s behavior;
providing a developmental context in which to understand the behavior; requiring that the teacher
consider what is known about the individual child as well as what is typical for the age group; and
matching the guidance strategies with the capabilities of the child.

4. How does a room arrangement promote positive interactions and appropriate behavior?

ANS:
Room arrangements are powerful tools for controlling children’s behavior, so teachers can achieve a
number of behavioral goals using the physical space in the classroom. Child-size furniture that fits the
preschool body encourages sitting and working behavior. Low, open shelves encourage self-help and
cleanup. Room arrangements that avoid a long, open space prevent a runway that might encourage
running. Room arrangements should suggest the type of behavior that should take place in that space:
large, protected floor space for block building, for instance, or pillows and comfortable furniture near
bookshelves to encourage quiet reading.

5. What are some of the cautions regarding using time-out with young children?

ANS:
The teacher’s role is to help the child see time-out as a time to regroup, talk about the incident, and
gain self-control. Caution must be applied to ensure that the child does not see this as an act of
rejection, detention, or as a way to vent anger about the child’s behavior.

TB-87
 © 2014 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
6. What is the role of cultural influence in choosing guidance techniques?

ANS:
To respect the values and beliefs that are embedded in the child’s cultural heritage; to provide
consistency between home and school; to foster dialogue with families where there is a conflict of
values; to gain insight into children’s behavior; to better match the child with the most effective
guidance approach; to create a cultural sensitivity between home and school.

7. How does a teacher help children achieve self-discipline?

ANS:
As children grow and develop, adults will decrease the amount of control they exercise over them and
gradually provide more opportunities for children to govern their own actions. When adults
communicate their trust in the child’s ability to learn self-control, children will respond appropriately.
With added responsibility and trust comes the added dimension of self-respect and confidence. As
children learn to experience the freedom that comes with the lessening of adult controls, they come to
know their own capabilities. Adults who care for children allow them to learn this in a safe place and
give them as much freedom as they can responsibly handle. Consistent and appropriate limits as well
as other good guidance strategies provide a safe setting.

8. How can you encourage children to do what you want them to do?

ANS:
Tell them what you want them to do rather than what you do not want them to do. Give examples that
are very clear, and make the suggestions in positive statements rather than beginning with “Don’t.”
Reinforce what children do right: catch them at being good. Let them know when they have behaved
as you wished. Help them refocus on a task by giving indirect suggestions or reminders instead of
commands, emphasizing what you want the child to do. Use positive redirection whenever possible.
Encourage children appropriately, being clear about what you are praising. Avoid global praise. Give
reasons for your request.

TB-88
 © 2014 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

ESSAY

1. Discuss briefly five factors that affect behavior.

ANS:
Five factors that affect behavior include the following:
a. Developmental factors help teachers anticipate what children will do and how they
might behave. This predictability helps teachers maintain reasonable expectations for
children’s behavior. When adults are aware of what behaviors are simply beyond the
capabilities of children, they can help avert situations that lead to conflicts.
b. Environmental factors help children control their behaviors. The classroom should be
designed for children’s use with small-size furniture arranged with low, open shelves to
encourage children to take out, use, and then put away the materials they want.
Challenging, stimulating, and age-appropriate materials capture children’s attention and
interest, which helps prevent many opportunities for misbehavior.
c. Individual or personal styles are present from birth. Teachers need to know a child’s
temperament so that discipline and guidance measures can be tailored to meet his or her
unique needs.
d. Social and emotional needs of children can create behavioral problems. This includes
the need to feel loved and cared for, the need to be included, the desire to be considered
important and valued, the desire to have friends, and the need to feel safe from harm.
Since young children are still working out ways to express these needs and feelings,
sensitive teachers will want to help them learn communication skills to resolve these
conflicts.
e. Discipline and guidance are deeply embedded in the values and beliefs of the family.
The family’s culture shapes how they raise their children, and each family is unique in
the way they interpret these values. Child-rearing practices are culturally influenced, and
the cultural practices of some families may be at odds with a teacher’s ideas and
expectations. As teachers become familiar with the customs and beliefs of the families
they serve, they will gain insights into children’s behavior. Teachers need to be flexible
and nonjudgmental as they work with the cultural implications of children’s behavior.

TB-89
 © 2014 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

2. Explain each rung on the guidance ladder.

ANS:
• Ignoring behavior–the adult chooses not to respond to the child in any way and may even become
occupied elsewhere while the behavior persists
• Active Listening “I” messages–the adult listens carefully, then reflects back in their own words
what they think was said, the child corrects any misinterpretations
• Reinforcement–the process by which a behavior is followed by a consequence, such as a reward or
punishment
• Redirection and distraction–redirection: the adult wants to change the activity in which the child is
engaged; distraction: used when the adult wants to focus the child’s attention on an activity that
may or may not relate to the previous behavior
• Giving children choices–give a choice only when you mean for the children to make the choice
• Setting limits–self-protective boundaries for when behavior goes out of bounds
• Active problem solving–engages children in confronting their differences
• Natural and logical consequences–natural: enhance children’s ability to take responsibility for
themselves; logical: function of what the adult imposes
• Time out–removing a child from the play area
• Physical intervention–teacher intervenes to prevent the child from injuring themselves, others or
property

3. Describe the steps to take when children act out frequently.

ANS:
There are five different support and guidance strategies a teacher may take when a child is frequently
acting out. They see and hear the uniqueness in each child by assessing the influence the behavior is
having on the child. Build caring relationships with children and their families by respecting the
individual child and their family. Make observations through collecting information about the child.
Modify the classroom and schedule by making legitimate opportunities for children to move about.
Finally, teacher attention and language are needed to get the point across. Do this through looking at
and speaking to the child at eye level, in a calm reassuring voice that does to shame or ridicule.

TB-90
Another random document with
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been known to sit through her Friday afternoon, with a half
pinned collar dangling loosely on one side. Such little
matters did not affect her serenity. Had she discovered the
collar in the midst of a room-full she would have gone
calmly to the mirror to pin it into position, without the
slightest flurry. Whereby it is evident that Mrs. Kennedy had
seen something of good society, even though her family
connections might not be altogether unexceptionable.

The frank simplicity of her manner was sometimes mistaken

for rusticity. But she was no rustic. She had considerable
perception, and not a little knowledge of human nature.
There were even touches of intellectual power, only her
education had been deficient; and when entirely at her
ease, she was apt to express herself in an odd
unconventional fashion.

A more devoted Parish worker than Mrs. Kennedy could

hardly be found. Mr. Kennedy was not strong in the visiting
line, having usually too many committees and meetings on
hand; but his wife did her best, as a wife should, to
supplement his deficiencies, to fill up gaps in his
administration. In public, she always appeared to be at one
with her husband in his views and proceedings; in private,
she had her own views and her own theories.

Some intimate friends would have described her as "Not

quite so desperately Low-Church as he is!"

However, as a matter of duty, she upheld him

praiseworthily.

"Have you heard that General and Mrs. Villiers arrived last
Monday?" asked Mabel.

"O yes, I know. All the world knows that, my dear. Time
enough too—after nearly four years abroad! People who
have got property ought to look after it, and not go
scrummaging all over the world. But of course it's no
wonder Mrs. Villiers likes change—a pretty young thing, tied
to a husband old enough to be her father, to say the very
least. And then the General's rheumatism makes such a
nice excuse for keeping him abroad. The General is a most
delightful man, of course—agreeable and all that—and I'm
sure she's quite prettily fond of him. It's as nice and proper
as can be; only you know one does sometimes expect to
hear her say 'Grandpa' when she speaks to him; and when
'William' pops out instead, it gives one a shock. And then
the Park must be so awfully dull: for it's only a certain sort
of people he cares to see, you know. Just those that think
exactly like himself."

"The St. John set," suggested Mabel, with a scintillation of

fun in her quiet eyes.

"Well, my dear, the St. John set is very good. Such nice
dear people, you know. I'm sure the dear good General
always says he is perfectly content with what he finds
among them: and if he and they—he and we, I mean—Now,
Mabel, don't look wicked! As to family, we've old Lady
Lucas, you know: and Miss Devereux is equal to anybody;
and then nothing can be more respectable than a lawyer
and a Colonel, not to speak of the General himself when
he's at home. But still, though he likes us well enough, I'm
not sure about his wife. She comes with him always, as
regular as clockwork—used to come, I mean—but you know
there's no doubt she's got a very uncommon mind, and she
reads books that you and I wouldn't know what on earth
they were all about! And I shouldn't quite think all the dear
good St. John's people would exactly satisfy her: I mean,
intellectually, don't you know? I should think she would
want a little more friction, perhaps—and originality, you
know."
"So my father feels."

"Oh, your father is so clever—I don't suppose he could

expect to find his match in Dutton, dear. One can't help
being a little afraid of him, you know, he's so clever."

Mabel laughed. "I have a piece of news," she said. "Who do

you think is expected at Dulveriford Rectory in a day or
two? Can't guess? Jem Trevelyan."

"Mr. James Trevelyan! Your cousin. He hasn't been for ages.

Centuries!" said Mrs. Kennedy, with the calm air of one
stating a fact.

"Not since I was a child. Yes, it is years ago. But he really is

coming at last, for a few days' rest. He has overdone
himself at the East-End."

"He's a nice man—very nice! Not one of those odd sort of

people that you can't tell whatever they are after next! But
my husband doesn't quite care for him, I'm afraid."

Mabel was intimate enough, not to be classed among the

horde of mere outsiders.

"We met him in Town last year, and he said something or

other—I'm sure I don't know what, only it was something
my husband didn't like. I suppose he's just a scrap too
Churchy, you know, for poor dear Thomas. But I'm sure he's
such a good man; and if anybody ever lived a real
missionary life, it's away in those horrible London slums of
despond."

"There's a ring. Another call. I must go."

"Oh, to-day of course! Sometimes everybody comes all

together, and then I just don't know what to do. I feel all
sat upon and 'scrushed,'" said Mrs. Kennedy, in her
unconventional language, while she looked affectionately at
Mabel with kind soft eyes. "The only thing to do, don't you
know, is to let them have it out. Everybody has always got
plenty to say. But such a crowd won't come to-day, I don't
think. It's too fine. Must you go, really? Well, good-bye, and
mind you tell your father that he really ought to look after
that poor little baronet, and keep him from being turned
into a molly. Oh, I'm forgetting—there's a note for him from
my husband. Couldn't you take it? Thomas!" cried Mrs.
Kennedy, opening the door, to find herself face to face with
Miss Devereux.

Mrs. Kennedy fell back a step. "Oh, how do you do? I'm so
glad it is you—not a man. Just think if it had been a man!"
she said frankly. "Do pray come in. I'm only calling my
husband to—"

Mr. Kennedy appeared through an opposite door. He was

undersized, plain-featured, and shy-mannered, with anxious
pale-tinted eyes which saw little before them, by reason of
the mental eyes being bent habitually inward. When his
glance fell upon Miss Devereux, he put out one hand, with a
gradual smile, deprecating in kind.

"Mabel is just going home, dear. Would you like to send any
message to Dr. Ingram?"

"I—yes, I have a note," said Mr. Kennedy.

He did not at once go in search of it, but followed Miss

Devereux into the drawing-room, and stood looking at her
with his mild blank goodness of expression. Nobody of any
penetration could see Mr. Kennedy, and not recognise the
goodness written in his face.
"Dear man! He is half in heaven already!" Some of his more
attached friends declared; though if there were truth in the
words, it remains an uncontrovertible fact that to be "half in
heaven already," does not obviate a considerable amount of
earthliness about the half still upon earth. The earthliness
takes different forms in different cases.

"I hope your nephew is well this summer—growing

stronger?" said Mr. Kennedy.

"Thank you, dear Cyril is fairly well, but I have to be very

careful of him," sighed Sybella. She did not look so
markedly older for her seven additional years as might have
been expected, but she had gained in a certain conscious
importance, in an air of responsibility. She had learned by
this time to appreciate her own position, and even to act for
herself. Still—Sybella was Sybella.

"He is always so delicate, dear boy! A great anxiety to me!

And at School you know—though I cannot speak highly
enough of the school—your recommendation!" effusively.
"Such a delightful man, the head-master—so truly
Evangelical!—And all the arrangements so perfect. Still of
course there cannot be quite the same individual care at
school as at home, and I am sadly afraid the dear boy is
sometimes a little imprudent. I can't think how it is—boys
do so dislike great-coats; and I cannot make him say
whether he always remembers to change his shoes the
moment they get damp. It is so very essential, you know. I
do my best to impress upon him the need for care. The way
he gets on is really astonishing; such a love for books! I tell
him he is never happy without a book in his hand; and he
works so hard—too hard, dear boy. It makes me so afraid
for his dear brain! I really cannot let him study through the
holidays—it is quite too much!"
"Oh, I shouldn't think an hour or two a day could hurt
anybody," suggested Mrs. Kennedy. "Keep him out of
mischief, don't you know?"

"Indeed, I beg your pardon! I think I am the best judge as

to that."

Mrs. Kennedy somehow always managed to excite Sybella's

bristles.

"The dear boy had a headache only yesterday: and I don't

like the way he coughs. I shall have to consult Dr. Ingram."

"Oh, come, he really did look uncommonly well yesterday,"

protested Mrs. Kennedy. "Not robust, of course—one doesn't
expect that—but plenty of vigour. Thomas, Mabel is
waiting."

Mr. Kennedy beat a deprecatory retreat, not sorry perhaps

to leave the ladies to fight their little battle out together.
After an interval of ten minutes, he slowly returned.

"I am very sorry—I have mislaid the note," he said. "But

perhaps you would kindly take a message, asking your
father to call. This is the woman's address."

"Must my father go there to-day?" asked Mabel, dismayed.

"He has been all that round by this time."

"I am afraid it is pressing. One does not know what is the

matter. I told her your father would be sure to look in
before night. The note ought to have been sent sooner, but
I—in fact, I forgot."

Mabel knew better than to protest, and she went off swiftly.
Outside the gate, a girl was waiting—about sixteen in age,
with a pale oval face, and clear greenish eyes.
"Jean, are you out of all patience?" cried Mabel. "I couldn't
get away sooner: and now I must just race home. You
ought to have come in."

"I'd rather not," Jean said decisively, as they began "the

race."

The two girls were second cousins.

"You don't care for the Kennedys, I know."

"I don't mind them."

"That doesn't mean liking."

"No; I suppose not. I don't think I care for a great many

people!" reflectively.

"A great many! My dear, whom do you really and honestly

like, out of your own proper circle? Except Cyril, and Jem,
and I suppose ourselves?"

"Mrs. Villiers. And lots of poor people."

"You have not seen Mrs. Villiers for close upon four years.
You were an infant then."

"I don't forget."

"No—I believe that! Jean, I declare, I won't have you so

frightfully unsociable. You ought to like people more. My
father says there is something nice in everybody, if only one
is willing to see it."

"Then I suppose I'm not willing," quoth straightforward

Jean.
"I wish Mr. Kennedy had sent this morning. My father will
have to go all the way down to the lower end of the town
again. He might just as well have done the business when
he was there two hours ago. He is so busy to-day."

"I don't call that nice of Mr. Kennedy."

"He doesn't think."

"Then he ought."

"Jean, you are always half pleased to find some little fault in
Mr. Kennedy," murmured Mabel.

The words had no denial. Jean looked as if she had gained a

new idea.

CHAPTER II.

MUD AND BRAMBLES.

"I wait for the day when dear hearts shall discover,
While dear hands are laid on my head,
The child is a woman, the book may close ever,
For all the lessons are said."

"I wait for my story—the birds cannot sing it,

Not one as he sits on the tree;
 The bells cannot ring it, but long years, O bring it,
Such as I wish it to be."
JEAN
INGELOW.

Dr. INGRAM'S house was almost outside the town, and thus
far the two girls went together. At the garden-gate they
stopped; Mabel ran indoors, after a hasty good-bye, and
Jean pursued her solitary way.

Dutton was a good two miles from Dulveriford. Jean had

permission to go to and fro, by the path through meadows
and fields; not by the high road. She turned into the
meadows directly after quitting the town, and went onward
in a quick steadfast fashion, not dallying. This does not
mean the absence of enjoyment. Jean had in her nature
intense capabilities of enjoyment; and the sights and
sounds of country life always thrilled her with a keen
delight, which custom could not deaden.

Now and again she would pause for a few seconds to listen
to the song of some little bird, to study the markings of a
butterfly as it zigzagged past, to watch the contented
munching of a pretty young cow. There were a good many
cows in one field, and a good many horses in the next. Fear
in connection with animals was a feeling unknown to Jean.
She did not, however, linger long for anything.

Jean at sixteen was simply the child of nine expanded. The

straight supple form was unchanged, only taller; the slim
sunburnt hands were only longer and more capable. The
greenish-brown eyes were serious as ever, with their old
power of shining under excitement.
She was not "plain" now; the delicate straight features
would admit of no such description; but neither was she
beautiful; and "pretty" was a term which nobody could think
of in connection with the severe simplicity of Jean's
outlines, dress, and manner. People generally called her
"uncommon;" a safe word which might admit of anything.

No change had taken place in Jean's manner of life. It had

been a continuous going on in the old lines; the harder part
of her studiously cultivated, the softer part stamped down
and driven inward. She had been trained in a splendid
mastery of principle over inclination; she had been taught
any amount of self-repression and self-control; body and
mind had been well and wisely handled. But training and
cultivation of the heart's affections had not been equally
prominent. Mr. Trevelyan was always just and even, always
entirely high-principled; and Madame Collier was always
practical. Neither of the two was in manner gentle or loving.

Had it not been for three definite outlets, Jean's softer and
more affectionate side would have been walled up and
subjected to a slow starvation. These three were—her
passionate and absorbing love for Oswald; her quiet
friendship with Cyril; her interest in the sick and needy of
the parish. Jean's tenderness thus found a three-fold vent,
and did not die; but at present it crept through those vents
in a shamefaced and surreptitious fashion.

Jem Trevelyan might have supplied a fourth softening

element. During years, however, he and Jean had seen little
one of another. With her Ingram cousins, Mabel especially,
Jean was on agreeable terms, and that was all; for the
three girls, pleasant as they were, and popular in many
quarters, touched no inner chord of Jean's being. As Mabel
had said, Jean "really liked" very few people. "Really to like"
in her case meant more than mere liking, and not "really to
like" meant profound indifference.

Springing over her fourth stile, on the way homeward, she

was arrested by an exclamation:

"Jean! That's jolly!"

"Cyril! You here!"

"I'm come to meet you—by accident."

"How did you know where I was?"

"Intuition."

"Nonsense."

"Madame Collier told me you'd gone to Dutton, so of course

I knew you'd come this way. I say!—Give me that basket."

"No. Cyril, let it alone. I like to carry something."

"So do I!"—dexterously twisting the handle off her arm.

"How you bother!"

"Yes, I know. It's only for your good. What's inside the
basket?"

"Nothing that concerns you."

"Hanks of darning cotton, I do believe. I say, Jean, you

must use an uncommon lot of old socks at the Rectory.
Madame Collier's one earthly occupation is turning them
over. I never find her at anything else; unless it is grubbing
up stones in the garden."
"Stockings, you mean; not socks."

"Two varieties of the same genus. What are you hurrying

for, now?"

"Aunt Marie will want me."

"Let her! I want you more."

"I can't wait, really. She will be vexed."

"Have you got to darn? I'll come and read to you, then."

Cyril had scarcely yet overtaken Jean in height. While

actually almost a year her senior, he was commonly
supposed to be the younger of the two. His make was so
slight as to give an appearance of fragility, not inconsistent
with a certain wiry vigour, but heightened by the girlish
hands and pale complexion, not to speak of a face hatchet-
like in thinness. Breadth of brow gave force to the latter,
but the dark hair clustered still in thick waves; and the
long-lashed violet eyes, though redeemed from insipidity by
any amount of fun, lent him so soft and "pretty" an
expression, that it was no wonder he had earned at school
the nickname of "Missy."

This did not imply contempt or unpopularity. More than five

years back, on first leaving Ripley Brow, with its enervating
influences and unlimited petting, for the rougher world of
school, Cyril had suffered much, and had had a hard battle
to fight. Miss Devereux little guessed how much of real
distress had been entailed upon the timid child by her
previous policy, or how he might justly have blamed her for
long months of misery. Happily, the check of a more
invigorating atmosphere came in time to prevent life-long
enfeeblement.
He had struggled through the worst long ago. He had now
been for years a boy among boys; to all appearance as
spirited and careless as any of them, when at school. If to
some extent he suffered still from want of nerve, the fact
was usually veiled. But it was odd how, immediately he
came home for the holidays, he would relapse more or less
into his old ways, responding to Sybella's petting. As of
yore, his affectionate and clinging disposition, together with
an easy sweetness of temper, made him malleable; and also
as of yore, the chief bracing element in his Dulveriford life
was—Jean.

Jean had not yet lost the impulse to take care of him, to
lead, and to expect that he should follow. Growth thus far
had been faster with her than with him. There was marked
promise of intellectual power in Cyril, but in almost all
respects he was still behind his age. Jean remained the
stronger, the swifter, the more fearless, the keener in
perception, the quicker in understanding, actually the elder,
so far.

It was a singular friendship between the two. Each cared

greatly for the other, but not after the same mode. While
Cyril's happiness was bound up in Jean, Jean's happiness
was bound up in Oswald. Cyril cared for no human being as
he cared for Jean. Love for her had grown with his growth,
winding itself in and out with the very strands of his being.
Jean was fond of Cyril, and she missed his companionship
when he was away, but she gave him no passionate
affection. That was reserved for Oswald.

"Why are you not at Dutton Park this afternoon?" asked

Jean.

"Because I'm here."

"Mrs. Villiers must want you."

"Mrs. Villiers isn't Jean, and I'm not Oswald. Why don't you
call her 'Evelyn'?"

"I don't know. When did you go last?"

"When? Oh, to-day's Friday. Monday evening I was there—

and Wednesday. Tuesday she came to us. Often enough,
surely. She's got a lot to do, settling in. I'll go again soon,
of course; perhaps to-morrow morning."

"It ought to be to-day."

"I'll see. What a lot you do think of Evelyn, to be sure!"

"Anyone would! If I had such a sister—"

"Well! If you had?"

"I would—Cyril, what's that?"

"Where? What are you looking at?"

"There! Don't you see?"

They had reached the next stile, and Jean stood not far
from it, gazing across a wide muddy ditch upon the bank
below the hedge.

"A bird—look! It's a robin. I can see its red breast. It has
been hurt."

"It's not a nestling. Too big."

"Then some horrid boy has thrown a stone. Hark! You can
hear it 'peep.' Poor little thing! It is almost too weak to
move. I must get it."
"You can't; just look at that slush."

"Slush! I'm not afraid of wet feet."

The touch of scorn was enough. Before Jean could move,

Cyril was down, ankle-deep, in the very middle of the wet
slush, which indeed proved to be of the nature of thick
watery mud.

"Cyril! How absurd! I didn't mean you to go. I meant to do

it myself. I should have gone to the stile, and climbed along
the bank."

"You couldn't. It's all brambles."

Jean nearly said, "I don't mind scratches," but forbore. Had
she uttered the words, he would certainly have charged the
brambles, to gain scars honourable in her eyes.

"I'll come too." Jean loved a scramble.

"No, don't. Stop! It's no use. Such a mess! Wait a moment.

Here he is—poor little chap! There, don't peck! What do you
mean to do with him? I believe his leg's broken."

"Oh, bring him to me."

"All right, I'm coming."

Jean bent over to receive the fluttering bundle of feathers,

and examined it tenderly, while Cyril sprang up on terra
firma. Furtively, he endeavoured to wipe his boots on the
grass; not openly, for fear Jean should count him
effeminate. He had not yet learned that a love of cleanliness
is not in essence unmasculine.
"Where's the basket? I'll make a soft bed of grass. Yes,
please gather some. You poor little thing! Fancy if we had
not found you! It's certainly a broken leg. We must get
home as fast as possible, and aunt Marie will know what to
do."

"You'll have to tie up the leg in a splint."

"Yes. I'll see. A bit of match, perhaps. Aunt Marie is so

clever at that sort of thing. Cyril, your boots are soaking!
You ought to go straight home and change them."

"Fudge!"

"What would Miss Devereux say?"

"Anything she likes."

"And you may catch cold."

"I'm not going!"

Such an opportunity to assert his manliness was not to be

lost. Jean might think it her duty to uphold Miss Devereux,
but he knew that if he went, she would—well, perhaps not
despise, but undoubtedly she would pity him. To be pitied
by Jean was more than Cyril could stand.

"If you catch cold—"

"I shan't catch cold."

"Well, I have warned you."

"All right."

In two minutes Jean forgot all about his boots, in attention

to her feathered invalid. Cyril by no means forgot, for their
soaked condition and outward muddiness both meant
discomfort, but he never thought of giving way.

As they reached the Rectory door, Mr. Trevelyan came out.

"Jean, just back? What are you after?" This question did not
mean displeasure. It only meant that he always expected
everybody to be "after" some definite object, and that he
wished to hear specified the precise end and aim of Jean's
existence at that moment.

"I'm going in to see if aunt Marie wants me. And this bird—"

"A robin—broken leg," said Mr. Trevelyan, touching the little

creature with kind fingers. "No, your aunt doesn't want you.
Give over the bird to her, and come with me to Dutton
Park."

"Now?"

"I met the General, and he mentioned that Mrs. Villiers

particularly asks an early call."

"Wouldn't aunt Marie like to go?"

"No, she prefers that I should take you."

Jean's eyes shone: her usual sign of pleasure. She never

thought of telling her father that she had already walked to
Dutton and back. The fact would have made no difference,
if he counted it her duty to go now.

"I've not seen Evelyn for a day or two," remarked Cyril, the
wistful look which always strengthened his likeness to
Evelyn creeping into his eyes.
Its effect upon Mr. Trevelyan was to bring the question,
"Would you like to go with us?"

Cyril's answer, if short, was unequivocal. He had not entirely

lost a certain boyish fear of Mr. Trevelyan, but Jean was a
more than counterbalancing attraction.

They went by the road this time—a somewhat shorter route

than by the fields. Mr. Trevelyan walked fast and steadily,
with long swinging strides, and the other two kept pace with
him as best they might: Jean easily, from long practice;
Cyril less easily, though he would on no account have
admitted the fact. He was better at fast running than at fast
walking; and the weight of his soaked boots pulled him
back.

Outside Dutton they saw the "Brow" carriage approaching,

Sybella seated therein with state and dignity.

"I say!" muttered Cyril in foreboding accents.

The carriage drew up, and Sybella bent forward to shake

hands with Mr. Trevelyan, whom she did not exactly
recognise as her Pastor, although she lived in his Parish,
since their views differed on certain points. A puckered
forehead showed discontent. She was never pleased to see
Cyril with the Trevelyans; and, considering how Cyril
haunted Jean, it was remarkable that her eyes should be so
seldom vexed with the vision. Perhaps an explanation lay in
the fact that Miss Devereux loved high roads and shops,
while Jean detested both; wherefore their orbits were
seldom entangled.

"How do you do? A very fine day. I hope Madame Collier is

well. Really I must call upon her one day soon—but so
many engagements, you know—always something turning
up. Cyril, my dear boy, I could not imagine where you were.
I was so anxious to take you to the Park. I have had really
quite to apologise. Two whole days since you went; and you
know it must seem strange. Where can you have been?"

"I am going to Evelyn now."

"But I could have saved you the long walk. Such a hot day!
I am not sure whether I had not better turn back—" Sybella
hesitated, debating with herself whether, in that case, it
would not be needful to give the Trevelyans a lift also.

She could hardly pick up her nephew, and leave them

trudging in the dust. But Mr. Trevelyan was not approved of
by some of her friends, and to be seen by certain of them
driving through Dutton side by side with him—by old Lady
Lucas, for example, or by Colonel Atherstone—such a
juxtaposition of representative individuals was not to be
thought of!

"I am afraid, though, that I cannot well spare the time. My

dear boy, you had really better put off till another day, and
come back with me. I am sure you are fatigued. This hot
sun is enough to give anybody a headache. Quite too much
for him," she added reproachfully to the Rector.

"Is it hot?" asked Mr. Trevelyan. He looked down and up,

and around, as if studying Nature for a reply.

"Exceedingly hot! Most oppressive! Surely you—But people

are so differently constituted," sighed Sybella, with an
audible little puff of exhaustion. "Now I feel to-day quite
incapable—really quite feeble and spiritless. I assure you, I
could not walk a mile to save my life."

"That might prove a potent incentive," suggested Mr.

Trevelyan, with another look at the tree-tops.
His irony was lost upon Sybella.

"Robust people do not suffer in the same way, I believe. So

fortunate for them! But dear Cyril is always so very easily
knocked up—and his poor head, you know—"

Cyril grew furiously red at having to endure this, with Jean

standing by.

"My dear boy, you are quite flushed, you are indeed—quite
overheated. It makes me so anxious. I really cannot
possibly allow this sort of thing to go on. I am sure you
have a headache."

"No, aunt!" Cyril's voice was seldom so gruff.

"No? But you are tired—fatigued. I am certain you will be

overdone. If I—Cyril!!"

Mr. Trevelyan lifted his eyebrows, and Jean's lips twitched.

Miss Devereux pointed with an agonised forefinger at Cyril's
feet.

"Oh, I just got a little muddy. I'm all right."

"It's my fault," Jean said promptly.

"Boys don't mind a trifle of mud," quoth Mr. Trevelyan, with

a solemn smile, perhaps not realising the extent to which
the "trifle of mud" went.

"Mud! His boots are wet through and through! I can see it
for myself. Boys in general are different. Cyril is not like
other boys. He must take care. It is absolutely necessary.
To go about with wet feet—I shall have him laid up all the
holidays. Another attack on his chest like the last would—I
assure you, the Brighton doctor told me, he could not
answer for the consequences," gasped the agitated lady.
"My dear boy, get at once into the carriage. I must drive
you home as fast as possible. As fast as possible,
Grimshaw!" raising her voice.

And Grimshaw touched his hat.

"You must change your boots and stockings the very

moment we arrive, and I must give you something hot to
drink."

Had the Trevelyans not been there, Cyril would no doubt

have yielded without resistance. He might have felt a
certain boyish dislike to the fuss—a dislike which had for
some time been growing upon him; yet mere force of habit
would have won the day. To be petted and coddled by his
aunt was so much a matter of course, that hitherto he had
submitted.

Jean's presence made all the difference. Cyril was fond of

his aunt, and he liked to please her; indeed, he liked to
please everybody, whether or no fondness came into the
question. But his love for Jean, his desire to stand well in
Jean's eyes, his dread of being pitied by Jean, were
overwhelming motives. To step into the carriage, and be
driven home for the purpose of changing his boots, while
Jean stood looking on, was too much. For almost the first
time, Sybella's petted darling refused to answer to the pull
of her rein.

"Nonsense, aunt. I'm all right. I'm going on to see Evelyn."

"If I may advise, I should not recommend a drive with

damp boots," said Mr. Trevelyan. "Exercise is safer than
sitting still; and he can dry them, if needful, at the Park."
This was reasonable. But to expect Sybella to hear reason
from Mr. Trevelyan would mean a dire ignorance of human
nature.

"I beg your pardon. I think I am the best judge as to that,"

she said, reddening. "Cyril, my dear boy—No, I could not
possibly run the risk!" to Mr. Trevelyan. "Cyril, my dear boy,
you really must—Cyril, I insist! You must come home with
me at once. Evelyn will understand. I will explain to her. I
could not allow you to go on with your feet in such a
condition. My dear boy, it is only for your own good—Pray
make haste, and get in! Every moment's delay increases
the risk. My dear boy, I assure you—Really, Cyril, I am very
much surprised—this is not like you! I am afraid it is the
consequence of—Cyril, if you do not come at once, I shall
have—Not of course that I expect you to prefer to be with
me, rather than with—It is only for your own sake! Cyril,
this is really too much! I insist upon obedience!"

Cyril held resolutely back, thus far.

Mr. Trevelyan moved a step nearer.

"My boy, the more manly part will be to yield," he said very
low; not too low for Jean as well as Cyril to hear.

The lad grow white, and looked at Jean.

"Yes, do go!" she said gently, pityingly.

Cyril could better have done without the pity: but Mr.
Trevelyan's words took effect.

"I must beg of you, Cyril, not to delay. For your own sake as
well as mine. I cannot wait any longer, and I insist upon
your coming," Miss Devereux went on with querulous
repetition.
"Good-bye," said Mr. Trevelyan.

He took Cyril's hand, with a warm grasp which spoke

volumes: and from that hour, he had a hold upon the young
baronet. "Come and see us again soon."

Cyril crimsoned to the roots of his hair, and stepped in.

"Poor boy: it is hard upon him," muttered the clergyman, as

they drove off, Sybella talking still.

CHAPTER III.

HUSBAND AND WIFE.

"Thus each retains his notions, every one."

JANE TAYLOR.

DUTTON PARK stood on sufficiently high ground to

command a view of the town, and of the surrounding
country. In one direction Ripley Brow might be seen, the
Brow standing up boldly, more than two miles away.
Between, the river wound in curves among low green banks
and meadows, after its rush through the gorge.
On a fine day, such as this, anyone walking in the Park
grounds could see the "S-like" windings shine here and
there with the brightness of burnished metal in the
sunshine; grey spaces of water intervening.

There were two ways of reaching the house from the main
road. One was by a shady drive, well bowered, the trees
meeting overhead in a continuous arch. The other lay
through open park-like fields, ending in two large ponds,
one on either side of the garden entrance. Following the
latter road, Mr. Trevelyan and Jean lingered three or four
minutes to watch the swans; then they crossed the wide
lawn of the garden, which was sprinkled with pines and
yews. Beds of massed colouring, closely packed, showed
rich and artistic arrangements of tints. The house was
extensive, white and low, guiltless of creepers, and on one
side, sheltered by a group of mighty elms.

The great drawing-room, over forty-five feet long, was used

only on state occasions. Evelyn's favourite resort for
ordinary purposes was the library, a long four-windowed
room, well lined with books. General Villiers had his private
study besides, and Evelyn had her boudoir; but when at
home, she was usually to be found in the library.

On this particular afternoon, she stood in the end window, a

large bow, gazing somewhat pensively upon the outer view:
not as if she very much cared for it.

At twenty-five, Evelyn well fulfilled the promise of her

girlhood, so far as actual beauty was concerned. The
delicacy of form and feature, the perfection of colouring, the
grace of movement, were unchanged. They had only
ripened into a fuller loveliness, with the addition of a
finished repose and graciousness of manner, an exquisite
high-bred ease, which no mere girl can show.
She wore a cream-coloured dress of India muslin,
handsome in make and rich in embroidery. There was about
her every appearance of a life of ease, of luxury, of
affectionate care, every token of a sheltered existence.
Looking upon her from without, it might seem that she had
not a want ungratified.

Yet those who studied Evelyn Villiers with observant eyes

were conscious of something lacking. They knew that life to
this fair creature had not thus far been all that it might have
been. The delicate cheek had already a slight inward curve,
marring its perfect oval; a curve which in such a face could
only have come from illness or from wear and tear. The
graceful bearing had about it a touch of weariness, of
listless indifference, like one tired of her surroundings. The
closed lips had gained a faintly satirical set; and the violet
eyes contained a look of forlornness, as if she thirsted
perpetually after something unattainable. It had been said
that the expression of those eyes was as of a captive
creature, chained down, and hopeless of escape.

But these were the views of those only who could see a
little below the surface. People in general said how pretty
and sweet and charming she was—only rather too exclusive,
rather difficult to know! And what an enviable life she led!
To be sure, one might wish that the husband were a few
years younger: but then he was rich and gentlemanly,
delightful in his manners, and such a good man too! What
mattered a little discrepancy in age? Mrs. Villiers was a
happy woman: she had everything she could possibly
desire!

"Mr. Trevelyan! How good of him! And Jean!"

Evelyn did not stir till the callers were announced. Then she
went forward, in her soft restrained fashion, holding out two
hands, a rare gesture with Mrs. Villiers.

"I am so glad to see you both. This is kind. It is just what I

wanted, treating me like an old friend! Somehow I have
always had the feeling that my most real friends were at
Dulveriford Rectory; though I have seen so little of you
since my marriage. I hope to see more now. We have come
back to settle down for a time. My husband is tired of
travelling."

"General Villiers was so good as to say that we might call at

once, not waiting till after Sunday."

"Did he? That was kind. He knew I wished it. And this is
Jean! The old look, I see—hardly changed."

She kissed Jean's cheek in her winning way—for Evelyn

could be irresistibly winning when she chose, though she
did not always choose.

"Do I know you well enough?" she asked.

"Jean is a child still," promptly asserted Mr. Trevelyan, while

Jean breathed a "Yes" of unlimited meaning.

Evelyn smiled. She knew in a moment her power over the

girl, and she was glad to know it. Jean interested her: not
only for the sake of Mr. Trevelyan, whom Evelyn had always
liked. Jean herself was so uncommon: not exactly good-
looking, but so very uncommon. There was a trenchant
attractiveness about the aristocratic pose of Jean's head,
and the straightforward earnestness of her singular eyes,
combined with an abnormal simplicity of dress and manner.

Evelyn's glance travelled over her, taking in all particulars:

then she sat down on a sofa, making Jean do the same.
"I want to know this child well," she said, with her sweet
graciousness. "Yes, I suppose she is a child still—compared
with me. But I have a fancy that we shall be friends some
day. Will you come and see me, Jean, when I am alone,
now and then?"

Jean's eyes brightened into a golden glow like sunshine. "If

I may," she said.

"The oftener the better," quoth Mr. Trevelyan, who was

under the power of Evelyn's magic wand, though not to
such an extent as to lose his own individuality.

"Thanks! Then come often, Jean—as often as you can be

spared. I must introduce you to my little boudoir. Only
think, that naughty brother of mine has not been near me
since Wednesday morning."

Explanations had to be given. Jean left them to her father,

and Mr. Trevelyan said no more than was needful, but
Evelyn drew certain particulars from him by skilful
questioning.

"The old story," she said. "My aunt will do her best to spoil
him. After all, the only hope lies in school."

"Cyril doesn't want to be a coddle," spoke up Jean in his

defence.

"You and he are great friends, are you not?"

"I don't know. Yes; I suppose so," Jean answered slowly, as

if anxious to be exact.

Presently, with an abrupt change of subject—only, nothing

that Evelyn did ever had an abrupt effect—Mrs. Villiers
asked—
"What of Dutton parties and politics?"

"I am not a man of Dutton," was the answer.

"The better able, perhaps, to take a dispassionate outside

view."

"That may be," cautiously, "but I am very busy in my own

work. Not much time to watch other people."

"I wish 'other people' could say the same. It seems to me

that the normal occupation of Dutton generally is to sit and
look at its neighbours—not with approving eyes."

"A common result of too little to do."

"And looking at them means talking about them. Things

have always been so, I suppose; but after years away, one
notices more. I have been in the thick of it all this week.
Everybody does not wait, like you and Jean, for leave to call
before Sunday. Perhaps I should not have given leave in
some cases—" with a slight curl of her lip. "I have had any
number of callers: and they all seem convinced that the one
object of my coming home is to hear how badly the world
has gone on in my absence. The Dutton world I mean."

"So long as they keep to generalities—" and a pause.

"They do not. It is all about individuals."

"Such remarks may be checked, if one is resolved."

Evelyn's face wore a curious look, as if she were conscious

of certain elements in the question which he had failed to
grasp.

"Perhaps—" she said gently. And then—

"St. John's is unchanged, I hear. The shabby little boys still
in full force!"

Mr. Trevelyan smiled, and drew cabalistic signs on the

carpet with his walking-stick, while Jean listened and learnt.
"I imagine that a good many elderly people would be
distressed at changes in St. John's," he said.

"People who believe in the infallibility of sixty years ago: I

never do understand that view of matters. Why must all
that is done at a certain date in one's life be right, and
every after deviation be wrong? Shall I come to the same
way of thinking when I am old?"

"It is a not unusual result of age with ordinary minds."

"But may not people go on and learn more, instead of

standing still? And don't the needs of different generations
differ? Doesn't human nature take fresh developments from
time to time, wanting varieties of help? I don't often talk
like this—" and a restless caged look came into her beautiful
eyes. "People would not understand. But surely truth as a
whole is wider than it is made out by some such good
people."

"Truth as a whole is wide as Him who is the Truth: and He is

wider than the Universe which He has made. Our views of
Truth may be narrow, but Truth itself is never narrow." Mr.
Trevelyan spoke in a brief incisive style, and she smiled.

"Yes: that is what I meant. You understand. One gets a

glimpse of how things really are sometimes—and then to
come down to the little circles of good people, saying hard
things of each other—But I shall be as bad as they, if I go
on! We had better talk of something else. Tell me about
your sister. Is she well? Busy as ever, I suppose. I want to
see her the first day I can. Ah—here is my husband."
A nameless change crept over Evelyn, noted at once by the
observant Jean. She looked up with a kind expression, a
species of polite wifely welcome; but the smile vanished,
and with it, her engaging sweetness. In a moment, the
violet eyes grew weary, the lips satirical, the whole manner
dignified and listless.

General Villiers came in quickly, with his military step and

carriage; handsome still, though his grey hair had become
white, and he was older in appearance by many years than
the number of his summers warranted. Chronic ill-health is
apt to age a man: and he had suffered much at times from
rheumatism. He might have been easily taken for past
seventy: and it was quite true, as Mrs. Kennedy had said,
that he looked like Evelyn's grandfather. He had even begun
to stoop a little. At the moment of his entrance, a distinct
frown was stamped upon his brow, as if something had
vexed him: but it cleared away at the sight of callers, and
he came forward to greet them, with his air of polished
courtesy.

The Trevelyans did not belong to that "St. John set" which
formed his own chosen environment when at home. As he
would perhaps have said, they did not "suit him." He knew,
however, that Evelyn liked them: and he was too
affectionate a husband not to be pleased with what gave
her pleasure, even though he might be just a little uneasy
at the prospect of an intimacy in that quarter.

He was somewhat in bondage to the opinions of others; not

of "others" generally, but of certain leading individuals in his
own clique; Miss Devereux, for instance, and Lady Lucas,
and Colonel Atherstone, none of whom liked or approved of
Mr. Trevelyan. Where his own kindliness of heart would have
carried him on, he was often pulled back by a recollection of
what others—these particular "others—" might say. Still, he