Henriette at first did not realize this, and when she met her former gay companions, was surprised when they passed her with an averted eye, or a slight nod of recognition.  Frequently was she called upon to meet that sudden death chill that falls so often upon the human heart, when the fond affections of many years gush warmly up to the eye and lip, as we meet some long cherished friend who passes us by with a cold, scornful glance.  O this is poverty’s bitterest curse, and this too must be met.  Those who might have removed many a sharp thorn from the pathway of the lonely Henriette, but added sharpness to their point, and made her feel and deeply feel,

  “Man’s inhumanity to man,
  Makes countless thousands mourn.”

The poor girl felt there was no time to sit still, for she was a destitute orphan, and she must try to help herself, and so she repaired to Mrs. Cobb, the most fashionable dress maker in the village, to see if she could learn her trade.

Matters were satisfactorily arranged, and she commenced immediately.  A willing hand and active mind made the task easier than she had anticipated.  It was soon a matter of conversation through all the village, when it became known that the haughty Henriette Clinton was going to be a dress maker, and many were the remarks that were made upon her everlasting gingham dress, for her nice sense of propriety prevented her from wearing the rich articles of apparel contained in her wardrobe; and at present she could procure no other.  She formed the resolution sometimes of disposing of some of her costly garments to relieve her present necessity, but they had been selected by her dear father, and were all that remained to her as a link of her past intercourse with him, and so she clung to them as dear remembrances of the past, the happy past.

She sat through the long weary hours with her eyes bent upon her work, and made rapid proficiency in the art she was acquiring.

Mr. Norcross, who purchased the Clinton estate, was a man of a low sordid mind not at all calculated to appreciate the elegance of his domicile.  He was a merchant, and had rapidly come into possession of great wealth, and wishing to climb a little higher upon the ladder of aristocracy, he thought a purchase of the lawyer’s splendid establishment would forward his progress.  Therefore, selling his own place at a very high price, and purchasing that at an equally low one, did not much diminish his hoarded gold.  But after all they were not the Clintons.  It was only Mr. Norcross the store-keeper, and they had many steps to climb before they could reach that position in society they were so desirous of attaining.  They bowed to one, scraped to another, parties were made, and many means devised, all of which were accompanied with disappointment, as the least desired would come, and those for whom the party was made would just as surely stay away.