"Oh, grandmother, it was sad! sad!—sadder even than I expected it would be. Every thing was so changed since I was there last, and that only so short a time ago." Alice paused a moment to recover herself, and then went on.
"You know when I went there last, it was all so bright and gay. The doors and windows were all set wide open, and the merry little children were trooping in and out all the time, laughing and playing, and all the family were gathered there, so glad and happy, and all seeming so secure. The very house seemed to be full of sunshine and laughter; and now—oh, such a sad contrast! It seemed to me as if I could have told from the very look of the house outside that she had gone, and they were mourning for her.
"Every door and window was shut fast. Not a creature to be seen moving about—no happy children, no merry voices, no laughter, no sunshine. It seemed the stillness of death. I scarcely dared to go in. Two or three times I lifted the knocker; but my heart failed me, and my hand fell,
