Part 41 (1/2)

'Did Lily think us unfit to take care of him?' asked Emily, in surprise.

As she spoke Lily herself came in, the key of the storeroom in her hand, and looks of consternation on her face. She came to announce a terrible deficiency in the preserved quinces, which she herself had carefully put aside on a shelf in the storeroom, and which Emily said she had not touched in her absence.

'Let me see,' said Eleanor, rising, and setting off to the storeroom; Emily and Lily followed, with a sad suspicion of the truth. On the way they looked into the nursery, to give little Henry to his nurse, and to ask Jane, who was sitting with Ada, what she remembered about it. Jane knew nothing, and they went on to the storeroom, where Eleanor, quite in her element, began rummaging, arranging, and sighing over the confusion, while Lily lent a helping hand, and Emily stood by, wis.h.i.+ng that her sister would not trouble herself.

Presently Jane came running up with a saucer in her hand, containing a quarter of a quince and some syrup, which she said she had found in the nursery cupboard, in searching for a puzzle which Ada wanted.

'And,' said Jane, 'I should guess that Miss Ada herself knew something about it, for when I could not find the puzzle in the right-hand cupboard, she was so very unwilling that I should look into that one; she said there was nothing there but the boys' old playthings and Esther's clothes. And I do not know whether you saw how she fidgeted when you were talking about the quinces, before you went up.'

'It is much too plain,' sighed Lily. 'Oh! Rachel, why did we not listen to you?'

'Do you suppose,' said Eleanor, 'that Ada has been in the habit of taking the key and helping herself?'

'No,' said Emily, 'but that Esther has helped her.'

'Ah!' said Eleanor, 'I never thought it wise to take her, but how could she get the key? You do not mean that you trusted it out of your own keeping.'

'It began while we were ill,' faltered Emily, 'and afterwards it was difficult to bring matters into their former order.'

'But oh, Eleanor, what is to be done?' sighed Lily.

'Speak to papa, of course,' said Eleanor. 'He is gone to the castle, and in the meantime we had better take an exact account of everything here.'

'And Esther? And Ada?' inquired the sisters.

'I think it will be better to speak to him before making so grave an accusation,' said Eleanor.

They now commenced that wearisome occupation--a complete setting-to- rights; Eleanor counted, weighed, and measured, and extended her cares from the stores to every other household matter. Emily made her escape, and went to sit with Ada; but Lily and Jane toiled for several hours with Eleanor, till Lily was so heated and wearied that she was obliged to give up a walk to Broomhill, and spend another day without a talk with Alethea. However, she was so patient, ready, and good-humoured, that Eleanor was well pleased with her. She could hardly think of the slight vexation, when her mind was full of sorrow and shame on Esther's account. It was she who, contrary to the advice of her elders, had insisted on bringing her into the house; she had allowed temptation to be set in her way, and had not taken sufficient pains to strengthen her principles; and how could she do otherwise than feel guilty of all Esther's faults, and of those into which she had led Adeline?

On Mr. Mohun's return Ada was interrogated. She pitied herself--said she did not think papa would be angry--prevaricated--and tried to coax away his inquiries, but all in vain; and at length, by slow degrees, the confession was drawn from her that she had been used to asking Esther for morsels of sweet things when she was sent to the storeroom; that afterwards she had seen her packing up some tea and sugar to take to her mother, and that Esther on that occasion, and several others, purchased her silence by giving her a share of pilfered sweetmeats. Telling her that he only spared her a very severe punishment for the present, on account of her illness, Mr.

Mohun left her, and on his way downstairs met Phyllis.

'Phyl,' said he, 'did Esther ever give you sweet things out of the storeroom?'

'Once, papa, when she had been putting out some currant jam, she offered me what had been left in the spoon.'

'Did you take it?'

'No, papa, for Eleanor used to say it was a bad trick to lick out spoons.'

'Did you ever know that she took tea and sugar from the storeroom, for her mother?'

'Took home tea and sugar to her mother! She could not have done it, papa. It would be stealing!'

Esther, who was next called for, cried a great deal, and begged for pardon, pleading again and again that -

'It was mother,' an answer which made her young mistresses again sigh over the remembrance of Rachel's disregarded advice. Her fate was left for consideration and consultation with Mr. Devereux, for Mr.

Mohun, seeing himself to blame for having allowed her to be placed in a situation of so much trial, and thinking that there was much that was good about her, did not like to send her to her home, where she was likely to learn nothing but what was bad.