For
several minutes she remained quite silent and quiet,
endeavouring to collect her scattered forces; then sitting
upright and drawing her shawl around her, she exclaimed — "I
must waken Ellen immediately!"
"Waken Ellen!" exclaimed her husband, in his turn; "what on
earth for? That's the very last thing to be done."
"Why, you would not put off telling her until to-morrow
morning?" said Mrs. Montgomery.
"Certainly I would; that's the only proper way to do. Why in
the world should you wake her up, just to spend the whole
night in useless grieving? — unfitting her utterly for her
journey, and doing yourself more harm than you can undo in a
week. No, no; just let her sleep quietly, and you can go to
bed and do the same. Wake her up, indeed! I thought you were
wiser."
"But she will be so dreadfully shocked in the morning!"
"Not one bit more that she would be to-night, and she won't
have so much time to feel it. In the hurry and bustle of
getting off, she will not have time to think about her
feelings; and once on the way, she will do well enough;
children always do."
Mrs. Montgomery looked undecided and unsatisfied.
"I'll take the responsibility of this matter on myself; you
must not waken her, absolutely. It would not do at all," said
the captain, poking the fire very energetically; "it would not
do at all; I cannot allow it."
Mrs.
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