第4章

shouldhavenoalternativebuttopartthemcruellybyrevealingthetruth。"Theletterendedwithsomecomplimentaryexpressionsaddressedtomyself。Andthequestionwas：howoughtItoanswerit？

Mycorrespondenthadstronglyimpressedmeinhisfavor；Icouldnotdoubtthathewasanhonorableman。ButtheinterestoftheMinisterinkeepinghisownbenevolentactionsecurefromtheriskofdiscovery——increasedasthatinterestwasbythefilialrelationsofthetwochildrentowardhim，nowpubliclyestablished——had，asIcouldnotdoubt，theparamountclaimonme。Theabsolutelysafecoursetotakewastoadmitnoone，friendorstranger，toourconfidence。Ireplied，expressingsincereadmirationofMr。Dunboyne’smotives，andmerelyinforminghimthatthechildwasalreadyprovidedfor。

Afterthat，IheardnomoreoftheIrishgentleman。

ItisperhapshardlynecessarytoaddthatIkepttheMinisterinignoranceofmycorrespondencewithMr。Dunboyne。Iwastoowellacquaintedwithmyfriend’ssensitiveandself—tormentingnaturetolethimknowthatarelativeofthemurderesswasliving，andwasawarethatshehadleftachild。

Alasteventremainstoberelated，beforeIclosethesepages。

DuringtheyearofwhichIamnowwriting，ourChaplainaddedonemoretothemanyexamplesthatIhaveseenofhisgenerousreadinesstoservehisfriends。HehadarrangedtodevotehisannualleaveofabsencetoatouramongtheEnglishLakes，whenhereceivedaletterfromaclergymanresidentinLondon，whomhehadknownfromthetimewhentheyhadbeenschool—fellows。Thisoldfriendwroteundercircumstancesoftheseverestdomesticdistress，whichmadeitabsolutelynecessarythatheshouldleaveLondonforawhile。Havingfailedtofindarepresentativewhocouldrelievehimofhisclericalduties，heappliedtotheChaplaintorecommendaclergymanwhomightbeinapositiontohelphim。Myexcellentcolleaguegaveuphisholiday—planswithouthesitation，andwenttoLondonhimself。

Onhisreturn，Iaskedifhehadseenanythingofsomeacquaintancesofhisandofmine，whowerethenvisitorstothemetropolis。Hesmiledsignificantlywhenheansweredme。

"Ihaveacardtodeliverfromanacquaintancewhomyouhavenotmentioned，"hesaid；"andIratherthinkitwillastonishyou。"

Itsimplypuzzledme。Whenhegavemethecard，thisiswhatI

foundprintedonit：

"MRS。TENERUGGEN（OFSOUTHBEVELAND）。"

"Well？"saidtheChaplain。

"Well，"Ianswered；"IneverevenheardofMrs。Tenbruggen，ofSouthBeveland。Whoisshe？"

"Imarriedtheladytoaforeigngentleman，onlylastweek，atmyfriend’schurch，"theChaplainreplied。"Perhapsyoumayrememberhermaidenname？"

Hementionedthenameofthedangerouscreaturewhohadfirstpresentedherselftome，inchargeofthePrisoner’schild——otherwiseMissElizabethChance。Thereappearanceofthiswomanonthescene——althoughshewasonlyrepresentedbyhercard——causedmeafeelingofvagueuneasiness，socontemptiblysuperstitiousinitsnaturethatInowrememberitwithshame。I

askedastupidquestion：

"Howdidithappen？"

"Intheordinarycourseofsuchthings，"myfriendsaid。"Theyweremarriedbylicense，intheirparishchurch。Thebridegroomwasafinetallman，withaboldeyeandadashingmanner。ThebrideandIrecognizedeachotherdirectly。WhenMissChancehadbecomeMrs。Tenbruggen，shetookmeaside，andgavemehercard。

’AsktheGovernortoacceptit，’shesaid，’inremembranceofthetimewhenhetookmeforanursemaid。TellhimIammarriedtoaDutchgentlemanofhighfamily。IfheevercomestoHolland，weshallbegladtoseehiminourresidenceatSouthBeveland。’

Thereishermessagetoyou，repeatedwordforword。"

"IamgladsheisgoingtoliveoutofEngland。"

"Why？Surelyyouhavenoreasontofearher？"

"Nonewhatever。"

"Youarethinking，perhaps，ofsomebodyelse？"

IwasthinkingoftheMinister；butitseemedtobesafestnottosayso。

———————

Mypenislaidaside，andmymanypagesofwritinghavebeensenttotheirdestination。WhatIundertooktodo，isnowdone。Totakeametaphorfromthestage——thecurtainfallshereontheGovernorandthePrison。

SecondPeriod：1875。

THEGIRLSANDTHEJOURNALS。

CHAPTERXI。

HELENA’SDIARY。

WEbothsaidgood—night，andwentuptoourroomwithanewobjectinview。Byourfather’sadvicewehadresolvedonkeepingdiaries，forthefirsttimeinourlives，andhadpledgedourselvestobeginbeforewewenttobed。

Slowlyandsilentlyandlazily，mysistersaunteredtoherendoftheroomandseatedherselfatherwriting—table。Onthedesklayanicelyboundbook，fullofblankpages。Theword"Journal"wasprintedonitingoldletters，andtherewasfittedtothecoversabrightbrasslockandkey。Asecondjournal，exactlysimilarineveryrespecttothefirst，wasplacedonthewriting—tableatmyendoftheroom。Iopenedmybook。Thesightoftheblankleavesirritatedme；theyweresosmooth，sospotless，soentirelyreadytodo_their_duty。Itooktoodeepadipofink，andbeganthefirstentryinmydiarybymakingablot。Thiswasdiscouraging。

Igotup，andlookedoutofwindow。

"Helena！"

Mysister’svoicecouldhardlyhaveaddressedmeinamorewearytone，ifherpenhadbeenatworkallnight，relatingdomesticevents。"Well！"Isaid。"Whatisit？"

"Haveyoudonealready？"sheasked。

Ishowedhertheblot。MysisterEunice（thestrangestaswellasthedearestofgirls）alwaysblurtsoutwhatshehasinhermindatthetime。Shefixedhereyesgravelyonmyspoiledpage，andsaid："Thatcomfortsme。"Icrossedtheroom，andlookedatherbook。Shehadnotevensummonedenergyenoughtomakeablot。

"Whatwillpapathinkofus，"shesaid，"ifwedon’tbeginto—night？"

"Whynotbegin，"Isuggested，"bywritingdownwhathesaid，whenhegaveusourjournals？Thosewisewordsofadvicewillbeintheirproperplaceonthefirstpageofthenewbooks。"

Notatallademonstrativegirlnaturally；notreadywithhertears，notliberalwithhercaresses，notfluentinhertalk，Eunicewasaffectedbymyproposalinamannerwonderfultosee。

Shesuddenlydevelopedintoanexcitableperson——Ideclareshekissedme。"Oh，"sheburstout，"howcleveryouare！Theverythingtowriteabout；I’lldoitdirectly。"

Shereallydiditdirectly；withoutoncestoppingtoconsider，withoutoncewaitingtoaskmyadvice。Lineafterline，Iheardhernoisypenhurryingtothebottomofafirstpage，andgettingthree—partsofthewaytowardtheendofasecondpage，beforesheclosedherdiary。Iremindedherthatshehadnotturnedthekey，inthelockwhichwasintendedtokeepherwritingprivate。

"It’snotworthwhile，"sheanswered。"AnybodywhocarestodoitmayreadwhatIwrite。Good—night。"

ThesingularchangewhichIhadnoticedinherbegantodisappear，whenshesetaboutherpreparationsforbed。Inoticedtheoldeasyindolentmovementsagain，andthatregularanddeliberatemethodofbrushingherhair，whichIcannevercontemplatewithoutfeelingastupefyinginfluencethathashelpedmetomanyadeliciousnight’ssleep。Shesaidherprayersinherfavoritecorneroftheroom，andlaidherheadonthepillowwiththeluxuriouslittlesighwhichannouncesthatsheisfallingasleep。Thisreappearanceofherusualhabitswasreallyarelieftome。EuniceinastateofexcitementisEuniceexhibitinganunnaturalspectacle。

ThenextthingIdidwastotakethelibertywhichshehadalreadysanctioned——Imeanthelibertyofreadingwhatshehadwritten。Hereitis，copiedexactly：

"IamnothalfsofondofanybodyasIamofpapa。Heisalwayskind，heisalwaysright。Ilovehim，Ilovehim，Ilovehim。

"ButthisisnothowImeanttobegin。Imusttellhowhetalkedtous；Iwishhewasheretotellithimself。

"Hesaidtome：’Youaregettinglazierthanever，Eunice。’HesaidtoHelena：’YouarefeelingtheinfluenceofEunice’sexample。’Hesaidtobothofus：’Youaretooready，mydearchildren，tositwithyourhandsonyourlaps，lookingatnothingandthinkingofnothing；Iwanttotryanewwayofemployingyourleisuretime。’

"Heopenedaparcelonthetable。Hemadeeachofusapresentofabeautifulbook，called’Journal。’Hesaid：’Whenyouhavenothingtodo，mydears，intheevening，employyourselvesinkeepingadiaryoftheeventsoftheday。Itwillbeausefulrecordinmanyways，andagoodmoraldisciplineforyounggirls。’Helenasaid：’Oh，thankyou！’Isaidthesame，butnotsocheerfully。

"Thetruthis，IfeeloutofspiritsnowifIthinkofpapa；Iamnoteasyinmymindabouthim。Whenheisverymuchinterested，thereisaquiveringinhisfacewhichIdon’trememberinpasttimes。Heseemstohavegotolderandthinner，allonasudden。

Heshouts（whichheneverusedtodo）whenhethreatenssinnersatsermon—time。Beingindreadfulearnestaboutoursouls，heisofcourseobligedtospeakofthedevil；butheneverusedtohittheharmlesspulpitcushionwithhisfistashedoesnow。Nobodyseemstohaveseenthesethingsbutme；andnowIhavenoticedthemwhatoughtItodo？Idon’tknow；Iamcertainofnothing，exceptwhatIhaveputinatthetopofpageone：Ilovehim，I

lovehim，Ilovehim。"

Therethisverycuriousentryended。Itwaseasyenoughtodiscovertheinfluencewhichhadmademyslow—mindedsistersoreadywithher。memoryandherpen——soready，inshort，todoanythingandeverything，providedherheartwasinit，andherfatherwasinit。

ButEuniceiswrong，letmetellher，inwhatshesaysofmyself。

I，too，haveseenthesadchangeinmyfather；butIhappentoknowthathedislikeshavingitspokenofathome，andIhavekeptmypainfuldiscoveriestomyself。Unhappily，thebestmedicaladviceisbeyondourreach。Theonereallycompetentdoctorinthisplaceisknowntobeaninfidel。ButforthatshockingobstacleImighthavepersuadedmyfathertoseehim。Asfortheothertwodoctorswhomhehasconsulted，atdifferenttimes，onetalkedaboutsuppressedgout，andtheothertoldhimtotakeayear’sholidayandenjoyhimselfontheContinent。

Theclockhasjuststrucktwelve。Ihavebeenwritingandcopyingtillmyeyesareheavy，andIwanttofollowEunice’sexampleandsleepassoundlyasshedoes。Wehavemadeastrangebeginningofthisjournalizingexperiment。Iwonderhowlongitwillgoon，andwhatwillcomeofit。

SECONDDAY。

IbegintobeafraidthatIamasstupid——no；thatisnotanicewordtouse——letmesayassimpleasdearEunice。Adiarymeansarecordoftheeventsoftheday；andnotoneoftheeventsofyesterdayappearsinmysister’sjournalorinmine。Well，itiseasytosetthatmistakeright。Ourlivesaresodull（butI

wouldnotsaysoinmyfather’shearingfortheworld）thattherecordofonedaywillbemuchthesameastherecordofanother。

AfterfamilyprayersandbreakfastIsuffermycustomarypersecutionatthehandsofthecook。Thatistosay，Iamobliged，beingthehousekeeper，toorderwhatwehavetoeat。Oh，howIhateinventingdinners！andhowIadmiretheenviableslownessofmindandlazinessofbodywhichhavesavedEunicefromundertakingtheworriesofhousekeepinginherturn！Shecangoandworkinhergarden，whileIamrackingmyinventiontodiscovervarietyindisheswithoutoversteppingthelimitsofeconomy。IsupposeImayconfessitprivatelytomyself——howsorryIamnottohavebeenbornaman！

Mynextemploymentleadsmetomyfather’sstudy，towriteunderhisdictation。Idon’tcomplainofthis；itflattersmypridetofeelthatIamhelpingsogreataman。Atthesametime，IdonoticethathereagainEunice’slittledefectshaverelievedherofanotherresponsibility。Shecanneitherkeepdictatedwordsinhermemory，norhassheeverbeenabletolearnhowtoputinherstops。

Afterthedictation，Ihaveanhour’stimeleftforpracticingmusic。Mysistercomesinfromthegarden，withherpencilandpaint—box，andpracticesdrawing。Thenwegooutforawalk——adelightfulwalk，ifmyfathergoestoo。Hehassomethingalwaysnewtotellus，suggestedbywhatwepassontheway。Then，dinner—timecomes——notalwaysapleasantpartofthedaytome。

SometimesIhearpaternalcomplaints（alwaysgentlecomplaints）

ofmyhousekeeping；sometimesmysister（Iwon’tsaythegreedysister）tellsmeIhavenotgivenherenoughtoeat。Poorfather！

DearEunice！

Dinnerhavingreacheditsend，westrollinthegardenwhentheweatherisfine。Whenitrains，wemakeflannelpetticoatsforpooroldwomen。Whatahorridthingoldageistolookat！Tobeugly，tobehelpless，tobemiserablyunfitforallthepleasuresoflife——IhopeIshallnotlivetobeanoldwoman。Whatwouldmyfathersayifhesawthis？Forhissake，tosaynothingofmyownfeelings，IshalldowellifImakeitacustomtousethelockofmyjournal。

OurnextoccupationistojointheScriptureclassforgirls，andtohelptheteacher。ThisisagooddisciplineforEunice’stemper，and——oh，Idon’tdenyit！——formytemper，too。Imaylongtoboxtheearsofthewholeclass，butitismydutytokeepasmilingfaceandtobeamodelofpatience。FromtheScriptureclasswesometimesgotomyfather’slecture。Atothertimes，wemayamuseourselvesaswellaswecantilltheteaisready。

Aftertea，wereadbookswhichinstructus，poetryandnovelsbeingforbidden。Whenwearetiredofthebookswetalk。Whensupperisover，wehaveprayersagain，andwegotobed。Thereisourday。Oh，dearme！thereisourday。

AndhowhasEunicesucceededinhersecondattemptatkeepingadiary？Hereiswhatshehaswritten。Ithasonemeritthatnobodycandeny——itissoonread：

"Ihopepapawillexcuseme；Ihavenothingtowriteaboutto—day。"

OverandoveragainIhavetriedtopointouttomysistertheabsurdityofcallingherfatherbytheinfantilenicknameofpapa。Ihaveremindedherthatsheis（inyears，atleast）nolongerachild。"Whydon’tyoucallhimfather，asIdo？"Iaskedonlytheotherday。

Shemadeanabsurdreply："IusedtocallhimpapawhenIwasalittlegirl。"

"That，"Iremindedher，"doesn’tjustifyyouincallinghimpapanow。"

Andsheactuallyanswered："Yesitdoes。"Whatastrangestateofmind！Andwhatacharminggirl，inspiteofhermind！

THIRDDAY。

Themorningposthasbroughtwithitapromiseofsomelittlevarietyinourlives——or，tospeakmorecorrectly，inthelifeofmysister。

Ournewandnicefriends，theStaveleys，havewrittentoinviteEunicetopaythemavisitattheirhouseinLondon。Idon’tcomplainatbeingleftathome。Itwouldbeunfilial，indeed，ifwebothofusforsookourfather；andlastyearitwasmyturntoreceivethefirstinvitation，andtoenjoythechangeofscene。

TheStaveleysareexcellentpeople——strictlypiousmembersoftheMethodistConnection——andexceedinglykindtomysisterandme。

ButitwasjustaswellformymoralwelfarethatIendedmyvisittoourfriendswhenIdid。Withmyfondnessformusic，I

feltthetemptationoftheEvilOnetryingme，whenIsawplacardsinthestreetannouncingthattheItalianOperawasopen。Ihadnowishtobeawitnessoftheshamefulandsinfuldancingwhichgoeson（Iamtold）attheopera；butIdidfeelmyprinciplesshakenwhenIthoughtofthewonderfulsingersandtheentrancingmusic。Andthis，whenIknewwhatanatmosphereofwickednesspeoplebreathewhoenteratheater！I

reflectwithhorroronwhat_might_havehappenedifIhadremainedalittlelongerinLondon。

HelpingEunicetopackup，Iputherjournalintothebox。

"Youwillfindsomethingtowriteaboutnow，"Itoldher。"WhileIrecordeverythingthathappensathome，youwillkeepyourdiaryofallthatyoudoinLondon，andwhenyoucomebackwewillshoweachotherwhatwehavewritten。"Mysisterisadearcreature。"Idon’tfeelsureofbeingabletodoit，"sheanswered；"butIpromisetotry。"GoodEunice！

CHAPTERXII。

EUNICE’SDIARY。

THEairofLondonfeelsveryheavy。ThereisanastysmellofsmokeinLondon。TherearetoomanypeopleinLondon。Theyseemtobemostlypeopleinahurry。Theheadofacountrygirl，whenshegoesintothestreets，turnsgiddy——Isupposethroughnotbeingusedtothenoise。

IdohopethatitisLondonthathasputmeoutoftemper。

Otherwise，itmustbeImyselfwhoamill—tempered。IhavenotyetbeenonewholedayintheStaveleys’house，andtheyhaveoffendedmealready。Idon’twantHelenatohearofthisfromotherpeople，andthentoaskmewhyIconcealeditfromher。Wearetoreadeachother’sjournalswhenwearebothathomeagain。

LetherseewhatIhavetosayformyselfhere。

TherearesevenStaveleysinall：Mr。andMrs。（two）；threeyoungMasters（five）；twoyoungMisses（seven）。AneldestmissandthesecondyoungMasteraretheonlyonesathomeatthepresenttime。

Mr。，Mrs。，andMisskissedmewhenIarrived。YoungMasteronlyshookhands。Helookedasifhewouldhavelikedtokissmetoo。

Whyshouldn’the？Itwouldn’thavemattered。Idon’tmyselflikekissing。Whatistheuseofit？Whereisthepleasureofit？

Mrs。wassogladtoseeme；shetookholdofmebybothhands。

Shesaid："Mydearchild，youareimproving。YouwerewretchedlythinwhenIsawyoulast。Nowyouarealmostaswell—developedasyoursister。Ithinkyouareprettierthanyoursister。"Mr。

didn’tagreetothat。Heandhiswifebegantodisputeaboutmebeforemyface。Idocallthatanaggravatingthingtoendure。

Mr。said："Shehasn’tgothersister’sprettygrayeyes。"

Mrs。said；"Shehasgotprettybrowneyes，whicharejustasgood。"

Mr。said："Youcan’tcomparehercomplexionwithHelena’s。"

Mrs。said："IlikeEunice’spalecomplexion。Sodelicate。"

YoungMissstruckin："IadmireHelena’shair——lightbrown。"

YoungMastertookhisturn："IpreferEunice’shair——darkbrown。"

Mr。openedhisgreatbigmouth，andaskedaquestion："Whichofyoutwosistersistheoldest？Iforget。"

Mrs。answeredforme："Helenaistheoldest；shetoldussowhenshewasherelast。"

Ireallycould_not_standthat。"Youmustbemistaken，"Iburstout。

"Certainlynot，mydear。"

"ThenHelenawasmistaken。"Iwasunwillingtosayofmysisterthatshehadbeendeceivingthem，thoughitdidseemonlytoolikely。

Mr。andMrs。lookedateachother。Mrs。said："Youseemtobeverypositive，Eunice。Surely，Helenaoughttoknow。"

Isaid："Helenaknowsagooddeal；butshedoesn’tknowwhichofusistheoldestofthetwo。"

Mr。putinanotherquestion："Do_you_know？"

"NomorethanHelenadoes。"

Mrs。said："Don’tyoukeepbirthdays？"

Isaid："Yes；wekeepbothourbirthdaysonthesameday。"

"Onwhatday？"

"ThefirstdayoftheNewYear。"

Mr。triedagain："Youcan’tpossiblybetwins？"

"Idon’tknow。"

"PerhapsHelenaknows？"

"Notshe！"

Mrs。tookthenextquestionoutofherhusband’smouth："Come，come，mydear！youmustknowhowoldyouare。"

"Yes；Idoknowthat。I’meighteen。"

"AndhowoldisHelena？"

"Helena’seighteen。"

Mrs。turnedroundtoMr。："Doyouhearthat？"

Mr。said："Ishallwritetoherfather，andaskwhatitmeans。"

Isaid："Papawillonlytellyouwhathetoldus——yearsago。"

"Whatdidyourfathersay？"

"Hesaidhehadaddedourtwoagestogether，andhemeanttodividetheproductbetweenus。It’ssolongsince，Idon’trememberwhattheproductwasthen。ButI’lltellyouwhattheproductisnow。Ourtwoagescometothirty—six。Halfthirty—sixiseighteen。Igetonehalf，andHelenagetstheother。Whenweaskwhatitmeans，andwhenfriendsaskwhatitmeans，papahasgotthesameanswerforeverybody，’Ihavemyreasons。’That’sallhesays——andthat’sallIsay。"

IhadnointentionofmakingMr。angry，buthedidgetangry。HeleftoffspeakingtomebymyChristianname；hecalledmebymysurname。Hesaid："Letmetellyou，MissGracedieu，itisnotbecominginayoungladytomystifyherelders。"

Ihadheardthatitwasrespectfulinayoungladytocallanoldgentleman，Sir，andtosay，Ifyouplease。Itookcaretoberespectfulnow。"Ifyouplease，sir，writetopapa。YouwillfindthatIhavespokenthetruth。"

Awomanopenedthedoor，andsaidtoMrs。Staveley："Dinner，ma’am。"Thatstoppedthisnastyexhibitionofourtempers。Wehadaverygooddinner。

ThenextdayIwrotetoHelena，askingherwhatshehadreallysaidtotheStaveleysaboutherageandmine，andtellingherwhatIhadsaid。IfoundittoogreatatrialofmypatiencetowaittillshecouldseewhatIhadwrittenaboutthedisputeinmyjournal。Thedays，sincethen，havepassed，andIhavebeentoolazyandstupidtokeepmydiary。

To—dayitisdifferent。Myheadislikeadarkroomwiththelightletintoit。Irememberthings；IthinkIcangoonagain。

Wehavereligiousexercisesinthishouse，morningandevening，justaswedoathome。（Nottobecomparedwithpapa’sreligiousexercises。）TwodaysagohisanswercametoMr。Staveley’sletter。HedidjustwhatIhadexpected——saidIhadspokentruly，anddisappointedthefamilybyaskingtobeexcusedifherefrainedfromenteringintoexplanations。Mr。said："Veryodd；"

andMrs。agreedwithhim。YoungMissisnotquiteasfriendlynowasshewasatfirst。AndyoungMasterwasimpudentenoughtoaskmeif"Ihadgotreligion。"Toconcludethelistofmyworries，I

receivedanangryanswerfromHelena。"Nobodybutasimpleton，"

shewrote，"wouldhavecontradictedmeasyoudid。Whobutyoucouldhavefailedtoseethatpapa’sstrangeobjectiontoletitbeknownwhichofusistheeldermakesusridiculousbeforeotherpeople？Mypresenceofmindpreventedthat。Yououghttohavebeengrateful，andheldyourtongue。"PerhapsHelenaisright——butIdon’tfeelitso。

OnSundaywewenttochapeltwice。Wealsohadasermonreadathome，andacolddinner。Intheevening，ahotdisputeonreligionbetweenMr。Staveleyandhisson。Idon’tblamethem。

AfterbeingpiousalldaylongonSunday，Ihavemyselffeltmypietygivewaytowardevening。

Thereissomethingpleasantinprospectforto—morrow。AllLondonisgoingjustnowtotheexhibitionofpictures。WearegoingwithallLondon。

Idon’tknowwhatisthematterwithmetonight。Ihavepositivelybeentobed，withoutgoingtosleep！Aftertossingandtwistingandtryingallsortsofpositions，IamsoangrywithmyselfthatIhavegotupagain。Ratherthandonothing，Ihaveopenedmyink—bottle，andImeantogoonwithmyjournal。

NowIthinkofit，itseemslikelythattheexhibitionofworksofartmayhaveupsetme。

Ifoundadreadfullylargenumberofpictures，matchedbyadreadfullylargenumberofpeopletolookatthem。ItisnotpossibleformetowriteaboutwhatIsaw：therewastoomuchofit。Besides，theshowdisappointedme。Iwouldratherwriteaboutadisagreement（oh，dear，anotherdispute！）IhadwithMrs。

Staveley。Thecauseofitwasafamousartist；nothimself，buthisworks。Heexhibitedfourpictures——whattheycallfiguresubjects。Mrs。Staveleyhadapencil。Ateveryoneofthegreatman’sfourpictures，shemadeabigmarkofadmirationonhercatalogue。Atthefourthone，shespoketome："Perfectlybeautiful，Eunice，isn’tit？"

IsaidIdidn’tknow。Shesaid："Youstrangegirl，whatdoyoumeanbythat？"

ItwouldhavebeenrudenottohavegiventhebestanswerIcouldfind。Isaid："Ineversawthefleshofanyperson’sfacelikethefleshinthefaceswhichthatmanpaints。Heremindsmeofwax—work。Whydoeshepaintthesamewaxyfleshinallfourofhispictures？Idon’tseethesamecoloredfleshinallthefacesaboutus。"Mrs。Staveleyheldupherhand，bywayofstoppingme。

Shesaid："Don’tspeaksoloud，Eunice；youareonlyexposingyourownignorance。"

Avoicebehindusjoinedin。Thevoicesaid："Excuseme，Mrs。

Staveley，ifIexpose_my_ignorance。Ientirelyagreewiththeyounglady。"

Ifeltgratefultothepersonwhotookmypart，justwhenIwasatalosswhattosayformyself，andIlookedround。Thepersonwasayounggentleman。

Heworeabeautifulbluefrock—coat，buttonedup。Ilikeafrock—coattobebuttonedup。Hehadlight—coloredtrousersandgrayglovesandaprettycane。Ilikelight—coloredtrousersandgrayglovesandaprettycane。WhatcolorhiseyeswereismorethanIcansay；Ionlyknowtheymademehotwhentheylookedatme。NotthatImindbeingmadehot；itissurelybetterthanbeingmadecold。HeandMrs。Staveleyshookhands。

Theyseemedtobeoldfriends。IwishedIhadbeenanoldfriend——notforanybadreason，Ihope。Ionlywantedtoshakehands，too。WhatMrs。Staveleysaidtohimescapedme，somehow。I