She was in the middle of the baking, with pans of Christmas buns and cooky platters all around her, when the driver drew in the reins at the end of the lane as she had requested.  She started like one suddenly awakened from a sound sleep.  It was dismal for her who had just dreamed herself surrounded by all her people to be sitting alone in the late evening.  As she stepped from the wagon and started to walk up the long lane that she might come unobserved to her old home, she felt so keenly the contrast between then and now that she would have preferred to turn back.

“Of what use is it to come here?” she sighed.  “It can’t be the same as in the old days!”

On the other hand she felt that since she had travelled such a long distance, she would see the place at all events, so continued to walk on, although she was more depressed with every step that she took.

She had heard that it was very much changed; and it certainly was!  But she did not observe this now in the evening.  She thought, rather, that everything was quite the same.  There was the pond, which in her youth had been full of carp and where no one dared fish, because it was father’s wish that the carp should be left in peace.  Over there were the men-servants’ quarters, the larder and barn, with the farm yard bell over one gable and the weather-vane over the other.  The house yard was like a circular room, with no outlook in any direction, as it had been in her father’s time—­for he had not the heart to cut down as much as a bush.

She lingered in the shadow under the big mountain-ash at the entrance to the farm, and stood looking about her.  As she stood there a strange thing happened; a flock of doves came and lit beside her.

She could hardly believe that they were real birds, for doves are not in the habit of moving about after sundown.  It must have been the beautiful moonlight that had awakened these.  They must have thought it was dawn and flown from their dove-cotes, only to become confused, hardly knowing where they were.  When they saw a human being they flew over to her, as if she would set them right.

There had been many flocks of doves at the manor when her parents lived there, for the doves were among the creatures which her father had taken under his special care.  If one ever mentioned the killing of a dove, it put him in a bad humour.  She was pleased that the pretty birds had come to meet her in the old home.  Who could tell but the doves had flown out in the night to show her they had not forgotten that once upon a time they had a good home there.

Perhaps her father had sent his birds with a greeting to her, so that she would not feel so sad and lonely when she came to her former home.