A LETTER, edged with black, announced the day of my master'sreturn, Isabella was dead; and he wrote to bid me get mourning forhis daughter, and arrange a room, and other accommodations, for hisyouthful nephew. Catherine ran wild with joy at the idea ofwelcoming her father back; and indulged most sanguine anticipationsof the innumerable excellencies of her 'real' cousin. The eveningof their expected arrival came. Since early morning she had beenbusy ordering her own small affairs; and now attired in her newblack frock - poor thing! her aunt's death impressed her with nodefinite sorrow - she obliged me, by constant worrying, to walkwith her down through the grounds to meet them.

'Linton is just six months younger than I am,' she chattered, as westrolled leisurely over the swells and hollows of mossy turf, undershadow of the trees. 'How delightful it will be to have him for aplayfellow! Aunt Isabella sent papa a beautiful lock of his hair;it was lighter than mine - more flaxen, and quite as fine. I haveit carefully preserved in a little glass box; and I've oftenthought what a pleasure it would be to see its owner. Oh! I amhappy - and papa, dear, dear papa! Come, Ellen, let us run! come,run.'

She ran, and returned and ran again, many times before my soberfootsteps reached the gate, and then she seated herself on thegrassy bank beside the path, and tried to wait patiently; but thatwas impossible: she couldn't be still a minute.

'How long they are!' she exclaimed. 'Ah, I see, some dust on theroad - they are coming! No! When will they be here? May we notgo a little way - half a mile, Ellen, only just half a mile? Dosay Yes: to that clump of birches at the turn!'

I refused staunchly. At length her suspense was ended: thetravelling carriage rolled in sight. Miss Cathy shrieked andstretched out her arms as soon as she caught her father's facelooking from the window. He descended, nearly as eager as herself;and a considerable interval elapsed ere they had a thought to sparefor any but themselves. While they exchanged caresses I took apeep in to see after Linton. He was asleep in a corner, wrapped ina warm, fur-lined cloak, as if it had been winter. A pale,delicate, effeminate boy, who might have been taken for my master'syounger brother, so strong was the resemblance: but there was asickly peevishness in his aspect that Edgar Linton never had. Thelatter saw me looking; and having shaken hands, advised me to closethe door, and leave him undisturbed; for the journey had fatiguedhim. Cathy would fain have taken one glance, but her father toldher to come, and they walked together up the park, while I hastenedbefore to prepare the servants.

'Now, darling,' said Mr. Linton, addressing his daughter, as theyhalted at the bottom of the front steps: 'your cousin is not sostrong or so merry as you are, and he has lost his mother,remember, a very short time since; therefore, don't expect him toplay and run about with you directly. And don't harass him much bytalking: let him be quiet this evening, at least, will you?'

'Yes, yes, papa,' answered Catherine: 'but I do want to see him;and he hasn't once looked out.'

The carriage stopped; and the sleeper being roused, was lifted tothe ground by his uncle.

'This is your cousin Cathy, Linton,' he said, putting their littlehands together. 'She's fond of you already; and mind you don'tgrieve her by crying to-night. Try to be cheerful now; thetravelling is at an end, and you have nothing to do but rest andamuse yourself as you please.'

'Let me go to bed, then,' answered the boy, shrinking fromCatherine's salute; and he put his fingers to remove incipienttears.

'Come, come, there's a good child,' I whispered, leading him in.'You'll make her weep too - see how sorry she is for you!'

I do not know whether it was sorrow for him, but his cousin put onas sad a countenance as himself, and returned to her father. Allthree entered, and mounted to the library, where tea was laidready. I proceeded to remove Linton's cap and mantle, and placedhim on a chair by the table; but he was no sooner seated than hebegan to cry afresh. My master inquired what was the matter.

'I can't sit on a chair,' sobbed the boy.

'Go to the sofa, then, and Ellen shall bring you some tea,'answered his uncle patiently.

He had been greatly tried, during the journey, I felt convinced, byhis fretful ailing charge. Linton slowly trailed himself off, andlay down. Cathy carried a footstool and her cup to his side. Atfirst she sat silent; but that could not last: she had resolved tomake a pet of her little cousin, as she would have him to be; andshe commenced stroking his curls, and kissing his cheek, andoffering him tea in her saucer, like a baby. This pleased him, forhe was not much better: he dried his eyes, and lightened into afaint smile.

'Oh, he'll do very well,' said the master to me, after watchingthem a minute. 'Very well, if we can keep him, Ellen. The companyof a child of his own age will instil new spirit into him soon, andby wishing for strength he'll gain it.'

'Ay, if we can keep him!' I mused to myself; and sore misgivingscame over me that there was slight hope of that. And then, Ithought, how ever will that weakling live at Wuthering Heights?Between his father and Hareton, what playmates and instructorsthey'll be. Our doubts were presently decided - even earlier thanI expected. I had just taken the children up-stairs, after tea wasfinished, and seen Linton asleep - he would not suffer me to leavehim till that was the case - I had come down, and was standing bythe table in the hall, lighting a bedroom candle for Mr. Edgar,when a maid stepped out of the kitchen and informed me that Mr.Heathcliff's servant Joseph was at the door, and wished to speakwith the master.

'I shall ask him what he wants first,' I said, in considerabletrepidation. 'A very unlikely hour to be troubling people, and theinstant they have returned from a long journey. I don't think themaster can see him.'

Joseph had advanced through the kitchen as I uttered these words,and now presented himself in the hall. He was donned in his Sundaygarments, with his most sanctimonious and sourest face, and,holding his hat in one hand, and his stick in the other, heproceeded to clean his shoes on the mat.

'Good-evening, Joseph,' I said, coldly. 'What business brings youhere to-night?'

'It's Maister Linton I mun spake to,' he answered, waving medisdainfully aside.

'Mr. Linton is going to bed; unless you have something particularto say, I'm sure he won't hear it now,' I continued. 'You hadbetter sit down in there, and entrust your message to me.'

'Which is his rahm?' pursued the fellow, surveying the range ofclosed doors.

I perceived he was bent on refusing my mediation, so veryreluctantly I went up to the library, and announced theunseasonable visitor, advising that he should be dismissed tillnext day. Mr. Linton had no time to empower me to do so, forJoseph mounted close at my heels, and, pushing into the apartment,planted himself at the far side of the table, with his two fistsclapped on the head of his stick, and began in an elevated tone, asif anticipating opposition -

'Hathecliff has sent me for his lad, and I munn't goa back 'bouthim.'

Edgar Linton was silent a minute; an expression of exceeding sorrowovercast his features: he would have pitied the child on his ownaccount; but, recalling Isabella's hopes and fears, and anxiouswishes for her son, and her commendations of him to his care, hegrieved bitterly at the prospect of yielding him up, and searchedin his heart how it might be avoided. No plan offered itself: thevery exhibition of any desire to keep him would have rendered theclaimant more peremptory: there was nothing left but to resignhim. However, he was not going to rouse him from his sleep.

'Tell Mr. Heathcliff,' he answered calmly, 'that his son shall cometo Wuthering Heights to-morrow. He is in bed, and too tired to gothe distance now. You may also tell him that the mother of Lintondesired him to remain under my guardianship; and, at present, hishealth is very precarious.'

'Noa!' said Joseph, giving a thud with his prop on the floor, andassuming an authoritative air. 'Noa! that means naught.Hathecliff maks noa 'count o' t' mother, nor ye norther; but he'llheu' his lad; und I mun tak' him - soa now ye knaw!'

'You shall not to-night!' answered Linton decisively. 'Walk downstairs at once, and repeat to your master what I have said. Ellen,show him down. Go - '

And, aiding the indignant elder with a lift by the arm, he rid theroom of him and closed the door.

'Varrah weell!' shouted Joseph, as he slowly drew off. 'To-morn,he's come hisseln, and thrust HIM out, if ye darr!'