In that encounter, so far as it had gone, she had been the victor.
As soon as she was alone and the carriage had been driven well away from the door, Mrs.Trevelyan left the drawing-room and went up to the nursery.

As she entered she clothed her face with her sweetest smile.

"How is his own mother's dearest, dearest, darling duck ?" she said, putting out her arms and taking the boy from the nurse.
The child was at this time about ten months old, and was a strong, hearty, happy infant, always laughing when he was awake and always sleeping when he did not laugh, because his little limbs were free from pain and his little stomach was not annoyed by internal troubles.

He kicked, and crowed, and sputtered, when his mother took him, and put up his little fingers to clutch her hair, and was to her as a young god upon the earth.

Nothing in the world had ever been created so beautiful, so joyous, so satisfactory, so divine! And they told her that this apple of her eye was to be taken away from her! No;--that must be impossible.