\"it is the town life,\" said she. \"their nerves are quickened by the hasteand bustle and speed of everything around them, to say nothing of the

confinement in these pent-up houses, which of itself is enough to inducedepression and worry of spirits. now in the country, people live somuch more out of doors, even children, and even in the winter.\"

\"but people must live in towns. and in the country some get suchstagnant habits of mind that they are almost fatalists.\"

\"yes; i acknowledge that. i suppose each mode of life produces its owntrials and its own temptations. the dweller in towns must find it asdifficult to be patient and calm, as the country-bred man must find it tobe active, and equal to unwonted emergencies. both must find it hard torealise a future of any kind; the one because the present is so living andhurrying and close around him; the other because his life tempts him torevel in the mere sense of animal existence, not knowing of, andconsequently not caring for any pungency of pleasure for the attainmentof which he can plan, and deny himself and look forward.\"

\"and thus both the necessity for engrossment, and the stupid content inthe present, produce the same effects. but this poor mrs. boucher! howlittle we can do for her.\"

\"and yet we dare not leāve her without our efforts, although they mayseem so useless. oh papa! it\"s a hard world to live in!\"

\"so it is, my child. we feel it so just now, at any rate; but we hāve beenvery happy, even in the midst of our sorrow. what a pleasurefrederick\"s visit was!\"

\"yes, that it was,\" said margaret; brightly. \"it was such a charming,snatched, forbidden thing.\" but she suddenly stopped speaking. she hadspoiled the remembrance of frederick\"s visit to herself by her owncowardice. of all faults the one she most despised in others was thewant of brāvery; the meanness of heart which leads to untruth. and herehad she been guilty of it! then came the thought of mr. thornton\"scognisance of her falsehood. she wondered if she should hāve mindeddetection half so much from any one else. she tried herself inimagination with her aunt shaw and edith; with her father; withcaptain and mr. lennox; with frederick. the thought of the lastknowing what she had done, even in his own behalf, was the mostpainful, for the brother and sister were in the first flush of their mutualregard and love; but even any fall in frederick\"s opinion was as nothingto the shame, the shrinking shame she felt at the thought of meeting mr.

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