One side of the churchyard--the side towards the weather--was sheltered
by an ancient thatched mud wall whose eaves overhung as much as one or
two feet. At the back of the wall was a corn-yard with its granary and
barns--the place wherein she had met Farfrae many months earlier. Under
the projection of the thatch she saw a figure. The young lady had come.
Her presence so exceptionally substantiated the girl's utmost hopes that
she almost feared her good fortune. Fancies find rooms in the strongest
minds. Here, in a churchyard old as civilization, in the worst of
weathers, was a strange woman of curious fascinations never seen
elsewhere: there might be some devilry about her presence. However,
Elizabeth went on to the church tower, on whose summit the rope of a
flagstaff rattled in the wind; and thus she came to the wall.
The lady had such a cheerful aspect in the drizzle that Elizabeth forgot
her fancy. "Well," said the lady, a little of the whiteness of her teeth
appearing with the word through the black fleece that protected her
face, "have you decided?"
"Yes, quite," said the other eagerly.
"Your father is willing?"
"Yes."
"Then come along."
"When?"
"Now--as soon as you like. I had a good mind to send to you to come to
my house, thinking you might not venture up here in the wind.
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