There  had  been  some  little  doubt  concerning  it  among
the  out-of-town  relatives :  some  had  opined  that  there


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wonld  be  none^  on  account  of  the  other  irregularities
of  the  exercises;  some  had  opined  that  the  usual
supper  would  be  provided.  The  latter  now  sniffed
and  nodded  triumphantly  at  the  others — ^particularly
Amelia  Stokes's  childish  old  mother.  She,  half  hid-
den in  the  frills  of  a  great  mourning-bonnet  and  the
folds  of  a  great  black  shawl^  kept  repeating,  in  a  sharp
little  gabble,  like  a  child's  :  "  I  smell  the  tea,  ''Melia
— I  do,  I  smell  it.  Yes,  I  do — I  told  ye  so.  I  tell  ye,
I  smell  the  tea.''

Poor  Amelia  Stokes,  who  was  a  pretty,  gentle-faced
spinster,  could  not  hush  her  mother,  whisper  as  plead-
ingly as  she  might  into  the  sharp  old  ear  in  the  bon-
net-frills. The  old  woman  was  full  of  the  desire  for
tea,  and  could  scarcely  be  restrained  from  following
up  its  fragrant  scent  at  once.
