“Mildred Arnold Jennison! Mildred Arnold
Jennison!” she repeated over and over.
“I don’t know her; I can hardly believe
she really exists; it seems more like one of the many
vagaries of ’Wild Jennie’ who was ever
fond of imagining herself some poor little princess
in disguise.”
And thus, by the time she reached home, she had worked
herself to the highest pitch of nervous excitement,
which culminated in Katherine’s arms, and which
she was patiently trying to overcome when we left
them to take our “backward glance.”
Conclusion.
By the time Jennie had given Katherine a brief outline
of what had occurred during the afternoon, the dinner
bell sounded and warned them that they must put aside
romance and startling revelations for the present
and come down to the more practical and prosaic affairs
of life.
“But, Katherine, I can’t go down,”
Jennie exclaimed as she sprang to the mirror and saw
her red and swollen eyes. “I look a perfect
fright.”
“Well, of course, you need not; I will send
you up something nice, and you can rest and try to
compose yourself, for you will want to tell us all
more of this wonderful story by and by,” Katherine
considerately returned as she arose from her kneeling
posture to obey the summons from below.
“But you may set the ball rolling, dearie.
I want them all to know, and they must have thought
I had a queer ‘bee in my bonnet’ when
I got home.”
“Very well, I will formally announce the advent
of our new guest, Miss Mildred Arnold Jennison, if
you wish, and I know that everyone will heartily rejoice
with you,” was the smiling reply.
Jennie threw her arms impulsively around her friend,
“Oh, Katherine! how good you always are to me!”
she cried. “What a blessed thing it was
for me that you chose to go to Hilton! If you
hadn’t I wouldn’t have known about Science—I
never should have come to Boston, and then I would
have missed to-day, an—”
“Oh, Jennie! Jennie! God governs all;
He has more ways than one of leading His children,
and when they are ready for the Truth it is always
revealed to them,” chidingly interposed her friend,
but dropping a fond kiss upon the flushed cheek nearest
her.
“Well, but it was you who made me ‘ready’
for it,” the girl persisted. “You
were so dear yourself you made me want to be dear,
too, and so my heart opened to receive the Truth.
And, Katherine"- -impressively—“every
day since I got your letter, just after auntie went
away, I have said over to myself what you wrote me,
and tried to believe it. It was this: ’Your
identity is not lost; you are God’s child, and
that child can never be deprived of her birthright,
or any other good necessary to her happiness and well-being’;
only I put it in the first person.”
“Dear, you have made it a true prayer, and to-day
you have received in part the answer to it,”
said Katherine, softly.
