The unexpected arrival of their master’s sister and her cortége at “The Pines,” as Mr. Delafield’s plantation¹ was called, produced quite a sensation among the blacks, who hastened to receive their guests with many demonstrations² of joy, rather more affected³ than real, for Mrs. Lansing was not very popular with them. Halbert and Jessie, on the contrary, were general favorites among the servants, who thought them little less than angels, particularly Jessie, who, with her sweet, young face, laughing eyes, and wavy⁴ hair, flitted like a sunbeam from cabin to cabin, asking after this old Aunty, or that old Uncle, and screaming with delight when in one hut she found three babies, all of an age, and belonging to the same mother, who boasted of having given to her master “fifteen as likely girls and boys as there were in Georgy.”

 

As yet the triplets had no names, but the arrival of the family suggested a new idea to Hannah, who, seating herself by Jessie, proposed that they be called, “Richard Delafield, Ada Montrose, and Jessie Lansing.”

 

With the first and last the little girl was well pleased, but she objected to the middle name, and taking one of the infants upon her lap, she told the story of her beloved teacher, who was dying at Cedar⁵ Grove⁶, and asked that 308the child she held might be called for her. So, baptized by Jessie’s tears, which fell like rain upon its dark and wrinkled face, the babe was christened “Rosa Lee.”

 

The house which Mrs. Lansing termed her country residence (for she always spoke⁷ of her brother’s possessions as her own), was a large, double log building, containing nothing very elegant in the way of furniture, but still presenting an air of neatness and comfort; for Aunt Dinah, who had charge of it, prided herself upon keeping it neat and clean, as her master was likely to come upon her at any time without warning, and she liked to impress him with her rare qualifications as

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