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I

As the date approached Maggie felt her anxieties settle down, like a fire, from turbulence to steady flame On the Sunday she had with real difficulty kept it to herself, and the fringe of the storm of wind and rain that broke over Herefordshire in the evening had not been reassuring Yet on one thing her will kept steady hold, and that was that Mrs Baxter ood could result, and there ht even be harh concerned: she ht write hi hiie passed the evening in fits of alternate silence and s Mrs Baxter reco, however, broke with a cloudless sky, an air like wine, and the chatter of birds; and by the tiie went to look at the crocuses iain Enough, however, of anxiety remained to make her hurry out to the stable-yard when she heard the postman on his way to the back door

There was one letter for her, in Mr Cathcart's handwriting; and she opened it rather hastily as she turned in again to the garden

It was reassuring It stated that the writer had approached--that was the word--Mr Baxter, though unfortunately with ill-success, and that he proposed on the following day--the letter was dated on Saturday evening--also to approach Lady Laura Bethell He felt fairly confident, he said, that his efforts would succeed in postponing, at any rate, Mr Baxter's visit to Lady Laura; and in that case he would write further as to as best to be done In the meanwhile Miss Deronnais was not to be in the least anxious Whatever happened, it was extremely improbable that one visit reat harm: it was the habit, rather than the act, that was usually hared to reie's spirits rose with a bound How extraordinarily foolish she had been, she told herself, to have been filled with such forebodings last night! It was more than likely that the séance had taken place without Laurie; and, even at the worst, as Mr Cathcart said, he was probably only a little an to think about future arrangenantly out at her from beneath the Queen Anne doorway to tell her that breakfast aiting, she was conceiving of the possibility of going up herself to London in a week or two on soenial atteain