But Beth, though yearning for the grand piano, could not
pluck up courage to go to the "Mansion of Bliss," as Meg
called it. She went once with Jo; but the old gentleman, not
being aware of her infirmity, stared at her so hard from under
his heavy eyebrows, and said " Hey!" so loud, that he
frightened her so much her "feet chattered on the floor," she
told her mother; and she ran away, declaring she would never
go there any more, not even for the dear piano. No persuasions
or enticements could overcome her fear, till, the fact coming to
Mr. Laurence's ear in some mysterious way, he set about mend-
ing matters. During one of the brief calls he made, he artfully
led the conversation to music, and talked away about great
singers whom he had seen, fine organs he had heard, and told
such charming anecdotes that Beth found it impossible to stay
in her distant corner, but crept nearer and nearer, as if fas-
cinated. At the back of his chair she stopped, and stood listen-
ing, with her great eyes wide open, and her cheeks red with the
excitement of this unusual performance. Taking no more
notice of her than if she had been a fly,Mr. Laurence talked
on about Laurie's lessons and teachers; and presently, as if the
idea had just occurred to him, he said to Mrs. March, --

"The boy neglects his music now, and I'm glad of it, for he
was getting too fond of it. But the piano suffers for want of
use. Wouldn't some of your girls like to run over, and practice
on it now and then, just to keep it in tune, you know, ma'am?"

Beth took a step forward, and pressed her hands tightly
together to keep from clapping them, for this was an irresistible
temptation; and the thought of practising on that splendid
instrument quite took her breath away. Before Mrs. March
could reply, Mr. Laurence went on with an odd little nod and
smile, --

"They needn't see or speak to any one, but run in at any
time; for I'm shut up in my study at the other end of the
house, Laurie is out a great deal, and the servants are never
near the drawing-room after nine o'clock."

-63-