Penny Blood Serial Fiction — page 224: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

CAROLINE WALTERS 207 to night, and so I gave her the best room at the back of the house, that she might sing to the river and not to the street. Yes, a nice girl was Miss Burdett. The one before her was Rachel Forrester, I think, — a fine young woman, tall and stately as Juno, and passionately fond of reading romances. Pray, are those young ladies with you now, my dear eeadana? 4 ‘Oh, yes,”’ replied Mrs. Brace; “ and I rather think — “ Hush! — what? ” sumnitired! Mrs. Lindley, leaning for- ward with an air of sreat mystery to catch the revelation about to be made, and the nature of which she could pretty well conjecture. ‘“‘ Don’t speak too loud, mind! What were you going to say? You think —”’ “That Rachel Forrester will have to pay you another visit in a couple of months, or so,’ added Mrs. Brace, irresistibly and also unconsciously catching for the moment a portion of that extreme habit of caution which appeared | to keep Mrs. Lindley ever on the qui wve lest her words should be overheard by curious ears or her movements noticed by prying eyes. ‘“ Well — well,” said the woman, “these things will happen — and it makes a good trade for me,’’ she added, with a low, chuckling laugh, which was, however, the loudest that she ever indulged in. ‘“‘ Won’t you take off your bonnet and cloak, and stay to supper with us?”’ she inquired after a short pause, and still addressing herself to the milliner. “No, I thank you; I must return home almost im- mediately,’ replied Mrs. Brace. ‘‘ But you had _ better take off your things, my love,’ she added, turning toward Caroline. The young girl rose from her chair and mechanically complied with the suggestion of her mistress. She unfastened the strings of her gipsy hat, which she placed upon the table; and then slowly let her cloak fall from her shoulders. The casual observer, on elancing at the igure of. Caroline — Walters, would not havc suspected its robust proportions to proceed from any other cause than the vigorous health of girlhood; but the experienced eye would have instantly perceived that she was far advanced in the way to become a mother, and that unnatural means of compression had been adopted to conceal her shame up to the present moment. GOMmiicdoo CS (C©)