‘I have not brought Biddy this time,’ said Mrs. Vane kindly.  ’I have come to see Mrs. Fairchild myself.  But Biddy shall come some day soon.  I want you to show her your doll-house, for I should be glad for her to get into the way of playing with one.  She has always been a difficult child to amuse,’ she went on; ’she is so restless, and never seems to get interested in her toys or games.’

Celestina opened her lips as if she were going to speak, but said nothing.

‘What is it, my dear?’ said Mrs. Vane, seeing the look in the little girl’s eyes.  Celestina grew pink.

‘It was only,’ she began.  ‘It’s not so nice to play alone.’

‘No, that is true,’ said Biddy’s mother, ’and true of other things as well as play.’  Then she turned to Mrs. Fairchild:  ’Have you been able to——­’ she was beginning, but with a little gesture of apology Mrs. Fairchild glanced at her daughter.

‘Go upstairs, Celestina, for a few minutes,’ and in a moment Celestina gathered together her small concerns and noiselessly left the room.

‘How obedient she is,’ said Mrs. Vane with a little sigh.  ’I should have had quite an argument with Biddy, or at least cross looks.’

‘Children are very different,’ said Mrs. Fairchild.  ’Still there is not much you can do with them without obedience.  And if they get the habit of it quite young, it costs them so much less; they obey almost without thinking about it.’

‘And have you seen Miss Neale?’ asked Mrs. Vane after a little pause.

’She came to see me yesterday, and I think it can be nicely arranged.  She is a very good girl:  I feel sure you will be pleased with her.  The only difficulty would have been her promise about Celestina, which she would not have liked to give up; but what you have so kindly proposed puts this all right of course.  It will be a great pleasure and interest to Celestina to learn with a companion.  I feel that I cannot thank you enough.’

‘On the contrary,’ said Mrs. Vane, ’I have to thank you.  I am in hopes that your little daughter’s companionship will be of great good to Bridget.’

Mrs. Fairchild’s gentle face grew a little red.

‘I think I may at least assure you of this,’ she said, ’little Miss Bridget will learn no harm from Celestina.’

‘I am sure of it,’ said Mrs. Vane warmly.  ‘By the bye,’ she added, ’Celestina is a very uncommon name.  I have never heard it except in its French form of “Celestine."’

‘Celestina was named after a French lady,’ said Mrs. Fairchild—­’a lady who was very kind to my sisters and me when we were young.  She happened to be living near the town where our home was for some years.  Her husband had an appointment there.  They had only one child, a daughter named Celestine like her mother, who died, and my mother helped to nurse her in her last illness, which made Madame d’Ermont very fond of her.  Indeed, I think she was very fond of us all,’ she added with a little smile, ’and I think I was a special pet of hers.  Through her kindness I had many advantages in my education.  But when she and Monsieur, as we always called him, went back to France troublous times came on.  We lost sight of them altogether.  Still, I have never forgotten the dear lady, and I determined to give my little girl her name.’