Early rising was one of James Mesurier's articles of faith; and he was always up and dressed by half-past six, though there was no breakfast till eight, and absolutely no necessity for his rising at that hour beyond his own desire.

There was still less, indeed none at all, for his children to rise thus early; but nevertheless he had recently decreed that such, for the future, must be the rule.

The rule fell heaviest upon the sisters, for the elder brother had always enjoyed a certain immunity from such edicts.

His sense of justice, however, kindled none the less at this final piece of tyranny.

He blazed and fumed indignantly on behalf of his sisters, in the sanctuary of that little study,--a spot where the despot seldom set foot; and out of this comparatively trivial cause had sprung a mighty resolution, which he and she whom he proudly honoured as "sister and friend" had, after some girding of the loins, repaired to the front parlour this evening to communicate.
They had entered somewhat abruptly, and stood rather dramatically by the table on which the father was writing,--the son with dark set face, in which could be seen both the father and mother, and the daughter, timid and close to him, resolutely keeping back her tears, a slim young copy of the mother.
"Well, my dears ?" said the father, looking up with a keen, rather surprised glance, and in a tone which qualified with some severity the "my dears." The son had had some exceedingly fine beginnings in his head, but they fled ignominiously with the calm that was necessary for their successful delivery, and he blurted at once to the point.
"We have come to say that we are no longer comfortable at home, and have decided to leave it." "Henry," exclaimed the mother, hastily, "what do you mean, how can you be so ungrateful ?" "Mary, my dear," interrupted the father, "please leave the matter to me." Then turning to the son: "What is this you are saying?
I'm afraid I don't understand." "I mean that Esther and I have decided to leave home and live together; because it is impossible for us to live here any longer in happiness--" "On what do you propose to live ?" "My salary will be sufficient for the present." "Sixty pounds a year!" "Yes!" "And may I ask what is wrong with your home?
You have every comfort--far more than your mother or father were accustomed to." "Yes, indeed!" echoed the mother.
"Yes, we know you are very good and kind, and mean everything for our good; but you don't understand other needs of our natures, and you make no allowance for our individualities--" "Indeed! Individualities--I should like you to have heard what my father would have said to talk about individualities.