It was slept out at last, and Elizabeth got up and began to dress.  Or rather, took her dressing-comb in hand and planted herself in front of the window, and there forgot what she had to do.  It was a fine afternoon of October, late in the day.  It was very fair outside.  The hills touched here and there in their green with a frost-spot —­ yellow, or tawny, or red; the river water lying very calm; and a calm sky over-head; the air as pure as though vapours and mists were refined away for ever.  The distant trees of the woodland shewed in round distinct masses of foliage, through such an atmosphere; the rocky shore edge cut sharp against the water; the nearer cedars around the home valley seemed to tell their individual leaves.  Here and there in some one of them a Virginia creeper’s luxuriant wreaths were colouring with suspicious tokens of crimson.  Not in their full brilliancy yet, the trees and the vine-leaves were in fair preparation; and fancy could not imagine them more fair than they looked that afternoon.

“So bright without! —­ and so dark within!” —­ Elizabeth thought.  “When will it end —­ or is it only beginning?  Such a flood of brightness was over me a little while ago, —­ and now, there is one burden in one room, and another in another room, and I myself am the greatest burden of all.  Because my life has nothing to look forward to —­ in this world —­ and heaven is not enough; I want something in this world. —­ Yes, I do. —­ Yet Winthrop Landholm has nothing more than I have, in this world’s things, and he don’t feel like me.  What is the reason?  Why is his face always so at rest, —­ so bright —­ so strong?  Ah, it must be that he is so much better than I! —­ he has more, not of this world’s things; religion is something to him that it is not to me; he must love his Master far better than I do. —­ Then religion might be more to me. —­ It shall be —­ I will try; —­ but oh! if I had never seen another Christian in all my life, how well his single example would make me know that religion is a strong reality.  What a reward his will be!  I wonder how many besides me he will have drawn to heaven —­ he does not dream that he has ever done me any good.  Yet it is pleasant to owe so much to him —­ and it’s bitter! —­”

“You’ll tire yourself with lookin’, Miss ’Lizabeth,” said Clam behind her.  “Mannahatta ain’t so far off as that.”

Elizabeth started a little from her fixed attitude and began to handle her dressing-comb.

“’Taint so far folks can’t get here, I guess.”

“Clam!” —­ said her mistress facing about.

“Well, Miss Lizzie —­”

“Go and take care of Karen.  I don’t want you.”

“She don’t want me,” said Clam.  “And you’ve had no dinner.”

“Do as I tell you.  I shall not have any.”

With this spur, Elizabeth was soon dressed, and then walked into Mrs. Haye’s room.  Rose apparently had had leisure for meditation and had made up her mind upon several things; but her brow changed as her cousin came in.