after a bad night with his mother (for he insisted on taking his turn as asitter-up) he was busy next morning before breakfast, contriving a leg-rest for dixon, who was beginning to feel the fatigues of watching. atbreakfast-time, he interested mr. hale with vivid, graphic, rattlingaccounts of the wild life he had led in mexico, south america, and

elsewhere. margaret would hāve given up the effort in despair to rousemr. hale out of his dejection; it would even hāve affected herself andrendered her incapable of talking at all. but fred, true to his theory, didsomething perpetually; and talking was the only thing to be done,besides eating, at breakfast.

before the night of that day, dr. donaldson\"s opinion was proved to betoo well founded. convulsions came on; and when they ceased, mrs.

hale was unconscious. her husband might lie by her shaking the bedwith his sobs; her son\"s strong arms might lift her tenderly up into afortable position; her daughter\"s hands might bathe her face; but sheknew them not. she would never recognise them again, till they met inheāven.

before the morning came all was over.

then margaret rose from her trembling and despondency, and becameas a strong angel of fort to her father and brother. for frederick hadbroken down now, and all his theories were of no use to him. he criedso violently when shut up alone in his little room at night, that margaretand dixon came down in affright to warn him to be quiet: for the housepartitions were but thin, and the next-door neighbours might easily hearhis youthful passionate sobs, so different from the slower tremblingagony of after-life, when we bee inured to grief, and dare not berebellious against the inexorable doom, knowing who it is that decrees.

margaret sate with her father in the room with the dead. if he had cried,she would hāve been thankful. but he sate by the bed quite quietly;only, from time to time, he uncovered the face, and stroked it gently,making a kind of soft inarticulate noise, like that of some mother-animal caressing her young. he took no notice of margaret\"s presence.

once or twice she came up to kiss him; and he submitted to it, givingher a little push away when she had done, as if her affection disturbedhim from his absorption in the dead. he started when he heardfrederick\"s cries, and shook his head:--\"poor boy! poor boy!\" he said,and took no more notice. margaret\"s heart ached within her. she couldnot think of her own loss in thinking of her father\"s case. the night waswearing away, and the day was at hand, when, without a word ofpreparation, margaret\"s voice broke upon the stillness of the room, witha clearness of sound that startled even herself: \"let not your heart betroubled,\" it said; and she went steadily on through all that chapter ofunspeakable consolation.

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