judgment,
”
said
she
,
“
and
to
lead
parents
,
rather
than
be
led
by
them
.
The
fitness
of
a
professor
is
not
a
matter
of
age
;
and
,
from
what
I
have
heard
,
and
from
what
I
observe
myself
,
I
would
much
rather
trust
you
than
M
.
Ledru
,
the
music-master
,
who
is
a
married
man
of
near
fifty
.
”
I
remarked
that
I
hoped
she
would
find
me
worthy
of
her
good
opinion
;
that
if
I
knew
myself
,
I
was
incapable
of
betraying
any
confidence
reposed
in
me
.
“
Du
reste
,
”
said
she
,
“
the
surveillance
will
be
strictly
attended
to
.
”
And
then
she
proceeded
to
discuss
the
subject
of
terms
.
She
was
very
cautious
,
quite
on
her
guard
;
she
did
not
absolutely
bargain
,
but
she
warily
sounded
me
to
find
out
what
my
expectations
might
be
;
and
when
she
could
not
get
me
to
name
a
sum
,
she
reasoned
and
reasoned
with
a
fluent
yet
quiet
circumlocution
of
speech
,
and
at
last
nailed
me
down
to
five
hundred
francs
per
annum
—
not
too
much
,
but
I
agreed
.
Before
the
negotiation
was
completed
,
it
began
to
grow
a
little
dusk
.
I
did
not
hasten
it
,
for
I
liked
well
enough
to
sit
and
hear
her
talk
;
I
was
amused
with
the
sort
of
business
talent
she
displayed
.
Edward
could
not
have
shown
himself
more
practical
,
though
he
might
have
evinced
more
coarseness
and
urgency
;
and
then
she
had
so
many
reasons
,
so
many
explanations
;
and
,
after
all
,
she
succeeded
in
proving
herself
quite
disinterested
and
even
liberal
.
At
last
she
concluded
,
she
could
say
no
more
,
because
,
as
I
acquiesced
in
all
things
,
there
was
no
further
ground
for
the
exercise
of
her
parts
of
speech
.
I
was
obliged
to
rise
.
I
would
rather
have
sat
a
little
longer
;
what
had
I
to
return
to
but
my
small
empty
room
?
And
my
eyes
had
a
pleasure
in
looking
at
Mdlle
.
Reuter
,
especially
now
,
when
the
twilight
softened
her
features
a
little
,
and
,
in
the
doubtful
dusk
,
I
could
fancy
her
forehead
as
open
as
it
was
really
elevated
,
her
mouth
touched
with
turns
of
sweetness
as
well
as
defined
in
lines
of
sense
.
When
I
rose
to
go
,
I
held
out
my
hand
,
on
purpose
,
though
I
knew
it
was
contrary
to
the
etiquette
of
foreign
habits
;
she
smiled
,
and
said
—
“
Ah
!
c’est
comme
tous
les
Anglais
,
”
but
gave
me
her
hand
very
kindly
.
“
It
is
the
privilege
of
my
country
,
Mademoiselle
,
”
said
I
;
“
and
,
remember
,
I
shall
always
claim
it
.
”
She
laughed
a
little
,
quite
good-naturedly
,
and
with
the
sort
of
tranquillity
obvious
in
all
she
did
—
a
tranquillity
which
soothed
and
suited
me
singularly
,
at
least
I
thought
so
that
evening
.
Brussels
seemed
a
very
pleasant
place
to
me
when
I
got
out
again
into
the
street
,
and
it
appeared
as
if
some
cheerful
,
eventful
,
upward-tending
career
were
even
then
opening
to
me
,
on
that
selfsame
mild
,
still
April
night
.
So
impressionable
a
being
is
man
,
or
at
least
such
a
man
as
I
was
in
those
days
.
CHAPTER
X
.
NEXT
day
the
morning
hours
seemed
to
pass
very
slowly
at
M
.
Pelet’s
;
I
wanted
the
afternoon
to
come
that
I
might
go
again
to
the
neighbouring
pensionnat
and
give
my
first
lesson
within
its
pleasant
precincts
;
for
pleasant
they
appeared
to
me
.
At
noon
the
hour
of
recreation
arrived
;
at
one
o’clock
we
had
lunch
;
this
got
on
the
time
,
and
at
last
St.
Gudule’s
deep
bell
,
tolling
slowly
two
,
marked
the
moment
for
which
I
had
been
waiting
.
At
the
foot
of
the
narrow
back-stairs
that
descended
from
my
room
,
I
met
M
.
Pelet
.
“
Comme
vous
avez
l’air
rayonnant
!
”
said
he
.
“
Je
ne
vous
ai
jamais
vu
aussi
gai
.
Que
s’est-il
donc
passe
?
”
“
Apparemment
que
j’aime
les
changements
,
”
replied
I
.
“
Ah
!
je
comprends
—
c’est
cela
—
soyez
sage
seulement
.
Vous
etes
bien
jeune
—
trop
jeune
pour
le
role
que
vous
allez
jouer
;
il
faut
prendre
garde
—
savez-vous
?
”
“
Mais
quel
danger
y
a-t-il
?
”
“
Je
n’en
sais
rien
—
ne
vous
laissez
pas
aller
a
de
vives
impressions
—
voila
tout
.
”
I
laughed
:
a
sentiment
of
exquisite
pleasure
played
over
my
nerves
at
the
thought
that
“
vives
impressions
”
were
likely
to
be
created
;
it
was
the
deadness
,
the
sameness
of
life’s
daily
ongoings
that
had
hitherto
been
my
bane
;
my
blouse-clad
“
eleves
”
in
the
boys’
seminary
never
stirred
in
me
any
“
vives
impressions
”
except
it
might
be
occasionally
some
of
anger
.
I
broke
from
M
.
Pelet
,
and
as
I
strode
down
the
passage
he
followed
me
with
one
of
his
laughs
—
a
very
French
,
rakish
,
mocking
sound
.
Again
I
stood
at
the
neighbouring
door
,
and
soon
was
re-admitted
into
the
cheerful
passage
with
its
clear
dove-colour
imitation
marble
walls
.
I
followed
the
portress
,
and
descending
a
step
,
and
making
a
turn
,
I
found
myself
in
a
sort
of
corridor
;
a
side-door
opened
,
Mdlle
.
Reuter’s
little
figure
,
as
graceful
as
it
was
plump
,
appeared
.
I
could
now
see
her
dress
in
full
daylight
;
a
neat
,
simple
mousseline-laine
gown
fitted
her
compact
round
shape
to
perfection
—
delicate
little
collar
and
manchettes
of
lace
,
trim
Parisian
brodequins
showed
her
neck
,
wrists
,
and
feet
,
to
complete
advantage
;
but
how
grave
was
her
face
as
she
came
suddenly
upon
me
!
Solicitude
and
business
were
in
her
eye
—
on
her
forehead
;
she
looked
almost
stern
.
Her
“
Bon
jour
,
monsieur
,
”
was
quite
polite
,
but
so
orderly
,
so
commonplace
,
it
spread
directly
a
cool
,
damp
towel
over
my
“
vives
impressions
.
”
The
servant
turned
back
when
her
mistress
appeared
,
and
I
walked
slowly
along
the
corridor
,
side
by
side
with
Mdlle
.
Reuter
.
“
Monsieur
will
give
a
lesson
in
the
first
class
to-day
,
”
said
she
;
“
dictation
or
reading
will
perhaps
be
the
best
thing
to
begin
with
,
for
those
are
the
easiest
forms
of
communicating
instruction
in
a
foreign
language
;
and
,
at
the
first
,
a
master
naturally
feels
a
little
unsettled
.
”
She
was
quite
right
,
as
I
had
found
from
experience
;
it
only
remained
for
me
to
acquiesce
.
We
proceeded
now
in
silence
.
The
corridor
terminated
in
a
hall
,
large
,
lofty
,
and
square
;
a
glass
door
on
one
side
showed
within
a
long
narrow
refectory
,
with
tables
,
an
armoire
,
and
two
lamps
;
it
was
empty
;
large
glass
doors
,
in
front
,
opened
on
the
playground
and
garden
;
a
broad
staircase
ascended
spirally
on
the
opposite
side
;
the
remaining
wall
showed
a
pair
of
great
folding-doors
,
now
closed
,
and
admitting
,
doubtless
,
to
the
classes
.
Mdlle
.
Reuter
turned
her
eye
laterally
on
me
,
to
ascertain
,
probably
,
whether
I
was
collected
enough
to
be
ushered
into
her
sanctum
sanctorum
.
I
suppose
she
judged
me
to
be
in
a
tolerable
state
of
self-government
,
for
she
opened
the
door
,
and
I
followed
her
through
.
A
rustling
sound
of
uprising
greeted
our
entrance
;
without
looking
to
the
right
or
left
,
I
walked
straight
up
the
lane
between
two
sets
of
benches
and
desks
,
and
took
possession
of
the
empty
chair
and
isolated
desk
raised
on
an
estrade
,
of
one
step
high
,
so
as
to
command
one
division
;
the
other
division
being
under
the
surveillance
of
a
maitresse
similarly
elevated
.
At
the
back
of
the
estrade
,
and
attached
to
a
moveable
partition
dividing
this
schoolroom
from
another
beyond
,
was
a
large
tableau
of
wood
painted
black
and
varnished
;
a
thick
crayon
of
white
chalk
lay
on
my
desk
for
the
convenience
of
elucidating
any
grammatical
or
verbal
obscurity
which
might
occur
in
my
lessons
by
writing
it
upon
the
tableau
;
a
wet
sponge
appeared
beside
the
chalk
,
to
enable
me
to
efface
the
marks
when
they
had
served
the
purpose
intended
.
I
carefully
and
deliberately
made
these
observations
before
allowing
myself
to
take
one
glance
at
the
benches
before
me
;
having
handled
the
crayon
,
looked
back
at
the
tableau
,
fingered
the
sponge
in
order
to
ascertain
that
it
was
in
a
right
state
of
moisture
,
I
found
myself
cool
enough
to
admit
of
looking
calmly
up
and
gazing
deliberately
round
me
.
And
first
I
observed
that
Mdlle
.
Reuter
had
already
glided
away
,
she
was
nowhere
visible
;
a
maitresse
or
teacher
,
the
one
who
occupied
the
corresponding
estrade
to
my
own
,
alone
remained
to
keep
guard
over
me
;
she
was
a
little
in
the
shade
,
and
,
with
my
short
sight
,
I
could
only
see
that
she
was
of
a
thin
bony
figure
and
rather
tallowy
complexion
,
and
that
her
attitude
,
as
she
sat
,
partook
equally
of
listlessness
and
affectation
.
More
obvious
,
more
prominent
,
shone
on
by
the
full
light
of
the
large
window
,
were
the
occupants
of
the
benches
just
before
me
,
of
whom
some
were
girls
of
fourteen
,
fifteen
,
sixteen
,
some
young
women
from
eighteen
(
as
it
appeared
to
me
)
up
to
twenty
;
the
most
modest
attire
,
the
simplest
fashion
of
wearing
the
hair
,
were
apparent
in
all
;
and
good
features
,
ruddy
,
blooming
complexions
,
large
and
brilliant
eyes
,
forms
full
,
even
to
solidity
,
seemed
to
abound
.
I
did
not
bear
the
first
view
like
a
stoic
;
I
was
dazzled
,
my
eyes
fell
,
and
in
a
voice
somewhat
too
low
I
murmured
—
“
Prenez
vos
cahiers
de
dictee
,
mesdemoiselles
.
”
Not
so
had
I
bid
the
boys
at
Pelet’s
take
their
reading-books
.
A
rustle
followed
,
and
an
opening
of
desks
;
behind
the
lifted
lids
which
momentarily
screened
the
heads
bent
down
to
search
for
exercise-books
,
I
heard
tittering
and
whispers
.
“
Eulalie
,
je
suis
prete
a
pleuer
de
rire
,
”
observed
one
.
“
Comme
il
a
rougi
en
parlant
!
”
“
Oui
,
c’est
un
veritable
blanc-bec
.
”
“
Tais-toi
,
Hortense
—
il
nous
ecoute
.
”
And
now
the
lids
sank
and
the
heads
reappeared
;
I
had
marked
three
,
the
whisperers
,
and
I
did
not
scruple
to
take
a
very
steady
look
at
them
as
they
emerged
from
their
temporary
eclipse
.
It
is
astonishing
what
ease
and
courage
their
little
phrases
of
flippancy
had
given
me
;
the
idea
by
which
I
had
been
awed
was
that
the
youthful
beings
before
me
,
with
their
dark
nun-like
robes
and
softly
braided
hair
,
were
a
kind
of
half-angels
.
The
light
titter
,
the
giddy
whisper
,
had
already
in
some
measure
relieved
my
mind
of
that
fond
and
oppressive
fancy
.
The
three
I
allude
to
were
just
in
front
,
within
half
a
yard
of
my
estrade
,
and
were
among
the
most
womanly-looking
present
.
Their
names
I
knew
afterwards
,
and
may
as
well
mention
now
;
they
were
Eulalie
,
Hortense
,
Caroline
.
Eulalie
was
tall
,
and
very
finely
shaped
:
she
was
fair
,
and
her
features
were
those
of
a
Low
Country
Madonna
;
many
a
“
figure
de
Vierge
”
have
I
seen
in
Dutch
pictures
exactly
resembling
hers
;
there
were
no
angles
in
her
shape
or
in
her
face
,
all
was
curve
and
roundness
—
neither
thought
,
sentiment
,
nor
passion
disturbed
by
line
or
flush
the
equality
of
her
pale
,
clear
skin
;
her
noble
bust
heaved
with
her
regular
breathing
,
her
eyes
moved
a
little
—
by
these
evidences
of
life
alone
could
I
have
distinguished
her
from
some
large
handsome
figure
moulded
in
wax
.
Hortense
was
of
middle
size
and
stout
,
her
form
was
ungraceful
,
her
face
striking
,
more
alive
and
brilliant
than
Eulalie’s
,
her
hair
was
dark
brown
,
her
complexion
richly
coloured
;
there
were
frolic
and
mischief
in
her
eye
:
consistency
and
good
sense
she
might
possess
,
but
none
of
her
features
betokened
those
qualities
.
Caroline
was
little
,
though
evidently
full
grown
;
raven-black
hair
,
very
dark
eyes
,
absolutely
regular
features
,
with
a
colourless
olive
complexion
,
clear
as
to
the
face
and
sallow
about
the
neck
,
formed
in
her
that
assemblage
of
points
whose
union
many
persons
regard
as
the
perfection
of
beauty
.
How
,
with
the
tintless
pallor
of
her
skin
and
the
classic
straightness
of
her
lineaments
,
she
managed
to
look
sensual
,
I
don’t
know
.
I
think
her
lips
and
eyes
contrived
the
affair
between
them
,
and
the
result
left
no
uncertainty
on
the
beholder’s
mind
.
She
was
sensual
now
,
and
in
ten
years’
time
she
would
be
coarse
—
promise
plain
was
written
in
her
face
of
much
future
folly
.
If
I
looked
at
these
girls
with
little
scruple
,
they
looked
at
me
with
still
less
.
Eulalie
raised
her
unmoved
eye
to
mine
,
and
seemed
to
expect
,
passively
but
securely
,
an
impromptu
tribute
to
her
majestic
charms
.
Hortense
regarded
me
boldly
,
and
giggled
at
the
same
time
,
while
she
said
,
with
an
air
of
impudent
freedom
—
“
Dictez-nous
quelquechose
de
facile
pour
commencer
,
monsieur
.
”
Caroline
shook
her
loose
ringlets
of
abundant
but
somewhat
coarse
hair
over
her
rolling
black
eyes
;
parting
her
lips
,
as
full
as
those
of
a
hot-blooded
Maroon
,
she
showed
her
well-set
teeth
sparkling
between
them
,
and
treated
me
at
the
same
time
to
a
smile
“
de
sa
facon
.
”
Beautiful
as
Pauline
Borghese
,
she
looked
at
the
moment
scarcely
purer
than
Lucrece
de
Borgia
.
Caroline
was
of
noble
family
.
I
heard
her
lady-mother’s
character
afterwards
,
and
then
I
ceased
to
wonder
at
the
precocious
accomplishments
of
the
daughter
.
These
three
,
I
at
once
saw
,
deemed
themselves
the
queens
of
the
school
,
and
conceived
that
by
their
splendour
they
threw
all
the
rest
into
the
shade
.
In
less
than
five
minutes
they
had
thus
revealed
to
me
their
characters
,
and
in
less
than
five
minutes
I
had
buckled
on
a
breast-plate
of
steely
indifference
,
and
let
down
a
visor
of
impassible
austerity
.
“
Take
your
pens
and
commence
writing
,
”
said
I
,
in
as
dry
and
trite
a
voice
as
if
I
had
been
addressing
only
Jules
Vanderkelkov
and
Co.
The
dictee
now
commenced
.
My
three
belles
interrupted
me
perpetually
with
little
silly
questions
and
uncalled-for
remarks
,
to
some
of
which
I
made
no
answer
,
and
to
others
replied
very
quietly
and
briefly
.
“
Comment
dit-on
point
et
virgule
en
Anglais
,
monsieur
?
”
“
Semi-colon
,
mademoiselle
.
”
“
Semi-collong
?
Ah
,
comme
c’est
drole
!
”
(
giggle
.
)
“
J’ai
une
si
mauvaise
plume
—
impossible
d’ecrire
!
”
“
Mais
,
monsieur
—
je
ne
sais
pas
suivre
—
vous
allez
si
vite
.
”
“
Je
n’ai
rien
compris
,
moi
!
”
Here
a
general
murmur
arose
,
and
the
teacher
,
opening
her
lips
for
the
first
time
,
ejaculated
—
“
Silence
,
mesdemoiselles
!
”
No
silence
followed
—
on
the
contrary
,
the
three
ladies
in
front
began
to
talk
more
loudly
.
“
C’est
si
difficile
,
l’Anglais
!
”
“
Je
deteste
la
dictee
.
”
“
Quel
ennui
d’ecrire
quelquechose
que
l’on
ne
comprend
pas
!
”
Some
of
those
behind
laughed
:
a
degree
of
confusion
began
to
pervade
the
class
;
it
was
necessary
to
take
prompt
measures
.
“
Donnez-moi
votre
cahier
,
”
said
I
to
Eulalie
in
an
abrupt
tone
;
and
bending
over
,
I
took
it
before
she
had
time
to
give
it
.
“
Et
vous
,
mademoiselle
—
donnez-moi
le
votre
,
”
continued
I
,
more
mildly
,
addressing
a
little
pale
,
plain
looking
girl
who
sat
in
the
first
row
of
the
other
division
,
and
whom
I
had
remarked
as
being
at
once
the
ugliest
and
the
most
attentive
in
the
room
;
she
rose
up
,
walked
over
to
me
,
and
delivered
her
book
with
a
grave
,
modest
curtsey
.
I
glanced
over
the
two
dictations
;
Eulalie’s
was
slurred
,
blotted
,
and
full
of
silly
mistakes
—
Sylvie’s
(
such
was
the
name
of
the
ugly
little
girl
)
was
clearly
written
,
it
contained
no
error
against
sense
,
and
but
few
faults
of
orthography
.
I
coolly
read
aloud
both
exercises
,
marking
the
faults
—
then
I
looked
at
Eulalie
:
“
C’est
honteux
!
”
said
I
,
and
I
deliberately
tore
her
dictation
in
four
parts
,
and
presented
her
with
the
fragments
.
I
returned
Sylvie
her
book
with
a
smile
,
saying
—
“
C’est
bien
—
je
suis
content
de
vous
.
”
Sylvie
looked
calmly
pleased
,
Eulalie
swelled
like
an
incensed
turkey
,
but
the
mutiny
was
quelled
:
the
conceited
coquetry
and
futile
flirtation
of
the
first
bench
were
exchanged
for
a
taciturn
sullenness
,
much
more
convenient
to
me
,
and
the
rest
of
my
lesson
passed
without
interruption
.
A
bell
clanging
out
in
the
yard
announced
the
moment
for
the
cessation
of
school
labours
.
I
heard
our
own
bell
at
the
same
time
,
and
that
of
a
certain
public
college
immediately
after
.
Order
dissolved
instantly
;
up
started
every
pupil
,
I
hastened
to
seize
my
hat
,
bow
to
the
maitresse
,
and
quit
the
room
before
the
tide
of
externats
should
pour
from
the
inner
class
,
where
I
knew
near
a
hundred
were
prisoned
,
and
whose
rising
tumult
I
already
heard
.
I
had
scarcely
crossed
the
hall
and
gained
the
corridor
,
when
Mdlle
.
Reuter
came
again
upon
me
.
“
Step
in
here
a
moment
,
”
said
she
,
and
she
held
open
the
door
of
the
side
room
from
whence
she
had
issued
on
my
arrival
;
it
was
a
salle-à-manger
,
as
appeared
from
the
beaufet
and
the
armoire
vitree
,
filled
with
glass
and
china
,
which
formed
part
of
its
furniture
.
Ere
she
had
closed
the
door
on
me
and
herself
,
the
corridor
was
already
filled
with
day-pupils
,
tearing
down
their
cloaks
,
bonnets
,
and
cabas
from
the
wooden
pegs
on
which
they
were
suspended
;
the
shrill
voice
of
a
maitresse
was
heard
at
intervals
vainly
endeavouring
to
enforce
some
sort
of
order
;
vainly
,
I
say
:
discipline
there
was
none
in
these
rough
ranks
,
and
yet
this
was
considered
one
of
the
best-conducted
schools
in
Brussels
.
“
Well
,
you
have
given
your
first
lesson
,
”
began
Mdlle
.
Reuter
in
the
most
calm
,
equable
voice
,
as
though
quite
unconscious
of
the
chaos
from
which
we
were
separated
only
by
a
single
wall
.
“
Were
you
satisfied
with
your
pupils
,
or
did
any
circumstance
in
their
conduct
give
you
cause
for
complaint
?
Conceal
nothing
from
me
,
repose
in
me
entire
confidence
.
”
Happily
,
I
felt
in
myself
complete
power
to
manage
my
pupils
without
aid
;
the
enchantment
,
the
golden
haze
which
had
dazzled
my
perspicuity
at
first
,
had
been
a
good
deal
dissipated
.
I
cannot
say
I
was
chagrined
or
downcast
by
the
contrast
which
the
reality
of
a
pensionnat
de
demoiselles
presented
to
my
vague
ideal
of
the
same
community
;
I
was
only
enlightened
and
amused
;
consequently
,
I
felt
in
no
disposition
to
complain
to
Mdlle
.
Reuter
,
and
I
received
her
considerate
invitation
to
confidence
with
a
smile
.
“
A
thousand
thanks
,
mademoiselle
,
all
has
gone
very
smoothly
.
”
She
looked
more
than
doubtful
.
“
Et
les
trois
demoiselles
du
premier
banc
?
”
said
she
.
“
Ah
!
tout
va
au
mieux
!
”
was
my
answer
,
and
Mdlle
.
Reuter
ceased
to
question
me
;
but
her
eye
—
not
large
,
not
brilliant
,
not
melting
,
or
kindling
,
but
astute
,
penetrating
,
practical
,
showed
she
was
even
with
me
;
it
let
out
a
momentary
gleam
,
which
said
plainly
,
“
Be
as
close
as
you
like
,
I
am
not
dependent
on
your
candour
;
what
you
would
conceal
I
already
know
.
”
By
a
transition
so
quiet
as
to
be
scarcely
perceptible
,
the
directress’s
manner
changed
;
the
anxious
business-air
passed
from
her
face
,
and
she
began
chatting
about
the
weather
and
the
town
,
and
asking
in
neighbourly
wise
after
M
.
and
Madame
Pelet
.
I
answered
all
her
little
questions
;
she
prolonged
her
talk
,
I
went
on
following
its
many
little
windings
;
she
sat
so
long
,
said
so
much
,
varied
so
often
the
topics
of
discourse
,
that
it
was
not
difficult
to
perceive
she
had
a
particular
aim
in
thus
detaining
me
.
Her
mere
words
could
have
afforded
no
clue
to
this
aim
,
but
her
countenance
aided
;
while
her
lips
uttered
only
affable
commonplaces
,
her
eyes
reverted
continually
to
my
face
.
Her
glances
were
not
given
in
full
,
but
out
of
the
corners
,
so
quietly
,
so
stealthily
,
yet
I
think
I
lost
not
one
.
I
watched
her
as
keenly
as
she
watched
me
;
I
perceived
soon
that
she
was
feeling
after
my
real
character
;
she
was
searching
for
salient
points
,
and
weak
points
,
and
eccentric
points
;
she
was
applying
now
this
test
,
now
that
,
hoping
in
the
end
to
find
some
chink
,
some
niche
,
where
she
could
put
in
her
little
firm
foot
and
stand
upon
my
neck
—
mistress
of
my
nature
.
Do
not
mistake
me
,
reader
,
it
was
no
amorous
influence
she
wished
to
gain
—
at
that
time
it
was
only
the
power
of
the
politician
to
which
she
aspired
;
I
was
now
installed
as
a
professor
in
her
establishment
,
and
she
wanted
to
know
where
her
mind
was
superior
to
mine
—
by
what
feeling
or
opinion
she
could
lead
me
.
I
enjoyed
the
game
much
,
and
did
not
hasten
its
conclusion
;
sometimes
I
gave
her
hopes
,
beginning
a
sentence
rather
weakly
,
when
her
shrewd
eye
would
light
up
—
she
thought
she
had
me
;
having
led
her
a
little
way
,
I
delighted
to
turn
round
and
finish
with
sound
,
hard
sense
,
whereat
her
countenance
would
fall
.
At
last
a
servant
entered
to
announce
dinner
;
the
conflict
being
thus
necessarily
terminated
,
we
parted
without
having
gained
any
advantage
on
either
side
:
Mdlle
.
Reuter
had
not
even
given
me
an
opportunity
of
attacking
her
with
feeling
,
and
I
had
managed
to
baffle
her
little
schemes
of
craft
.
It
was
a
regular
drawn
battle
.
I
again
held
out
my
hand
when
I
left
the
room
,
she
gave
me
hers
;
it
was
a
small
and
white
hand
,
but
how
cool
!
I
met
her
eye
too
in
full
—
obliging
her
to
give
me
a
straightforward
look
;
this
last
test
went
against
me
:
it
left
her
as
it
found
her
—
moderate
,
temperate
,
tranquil
;
me
it
disappointed
.
“
I
am
growing
wiser
,
”
thought
I
,
as
I
walked
back
to
M
.
Pelet’s
.
“
Look
at
this
little
woman
;
is
she
like
the
women
of
novelists
and
romancers
?
To
read
of
female
character
as
depicted
in
Poetry
and
Fiction
,
one
would
think
it
was
made
up
of
sentiment
,
either
for
good
or
bad
—
here
is
a
specimen
,
and
a
most
sensible
and
respectable
specimen
,
too
,
whose
staple
ingredient
is
abstract
reason
.
No
Talleyrand
was
ever
more
passionless
than
Zoraide
Reuter
!
”
So
I
thought
then
;
I
found
afterwards
that
blunt
susceptibilities
are
very
consistent
with
strong
propensities
.
CHAPTER
XI
.
I
HAD
indeed
had
a
very
long
talk
with
the
crafty
little
politician
,
and
on
regaining
my
quarters
,
I
found
that
dinner
was
half
over
.
To
be
late
at
meals
was
against
a
standing
rule
of
the
establishment
,
and
had
it
been
one
of
the
Flemish
ushers
who
thus
entered
after
the
removal
of
the
soup
and
the
commencement
of
the
first
course
,
M
.
Pelet
would
probably
have
greeted
him
with
a
public
rebuke
,
and
would
certainly
have
mulcted
him
both
of
soup
and
fish
;
as
it
was
,
that
polite
though
partial
gentleman
only
shook
his
head
,
and
as
I
took
my
place
,
unrolled
my
napkin
,
and
said
my
heretical
grace
to
myself
,
he
civilly
despatched
a
servant
to
the
kitchen
,
to
bring
me
a
plate
of
“
puree
aux
carottes
”
(
for
this
was
a
maigre-day
)
,
and
before
sending
away
the
first
course
,
reserved
for
me
a
portion
of
the
stock-fish
of
which
it
consisted
.
Dinner
being
over
,
the
boys
rushed
out
for
their
evening
play
;
Kint
and
Vandam
(
the
two
ushers
)
of
course
followed
them
.
Poor
fellows
!
if
they
had
not
looked
so
very
heavy
,
so
very
soulless
,
so
very
indifferent
to
all
things
in
heaven
above
or
in
the
earth
beneath
,
I
could
have
pitied
them
greatly
for
the
obligation
they
were
under
to
trail
after
those
rough
lads
everywhere
and
at
all
times
;
even
as
it
was
,
I
felt
disposed
to
scout
myself
as
a
privileged
prig
when
I
turned
to
ascend
to
my
chamber
,
sure
to
find
there
,
if
not
enjoyment
,
at
least
liberty
;
but
this
evening
(
as
had
often
happened
before
)
I
was
to
be
still
farther
distinguished
.
“
Eh
bien
,
mauvais
sujet
!
”
said
the
voice
of
M
.
Pelet
behind
me
,
as
I
set
my
foot
on
the
first
step
of
the
stair
,
“
ou
allez-vous
?
Venez
a
la
salle-a-manger
,
que
je
vous
gronde
un
peu
.
”
“
I
beg
pardon
,
monsieur
,
”
said
I
,
as
I
followed
him
to
his
private
sitting-room
,
“
for
having
returned
so
late
—
it
was
not
my
fault
.
”
“
That
is
just
what
I
want
to
know
,
”
rejoined
M
.
Pelet
,
as
he
ushered
me
into
the
comfortable
parlour
with
a
good
wood-fire
—
for
the
stove
had
now
been
removed
for
the
season
.
Having
rung
the
bell
he
ordered
“
Coffee
for
two
,
”
and
presently
he
and
I
were
seated
,
almost
in
English
comfort
,
one
on
each
side
of
the
hearth
,
a
little
round
table
between
us
,
with
a
coffee-pot
,
a
sugar-basin
,
and
two
large
white
china
cups
.
While
M
.
Pelet
employed
himself
in
choosing
a
cigar
from
a
box
,
my
thoughts
reverted
to
the
two
outcast
ushers
,
whose
voices
I
could
hear
even
now
crying
hoarsely
for
order
in
the
playground
.
“
C’est
une
grande
responsabilite
,
que
la
surveillance
,
”
observed
I
.
“
Plait-il
?
”
dit
M
.
Pelet
.
I
remarked
that
I
thought
Messieurs
Vandam
and
Kint
must
sometimes
be
a
little
fatigued
with
their
labours
.
“
Des
betes
de
somme
,
—
des
betes
de
somme
,
”
murmured
scornfully
the
director
.
Meantime
I
offered
him
his
cup
of
coffee
.
“
Servez-vous
mon
garcon
,
”
said
he
blandly
,
when
I
had
put
a
couple
of
huge
lumps
of
continental
sugar
into
his
cup
.
“
And
now
tell
me
why
you
stayed
so
long
at
Mdlle
.
Reuter’s
.
I
know
that
lessons
conclude
,
in
her
establishment
as
in
mine
,
at
four
o’clock
,
and
when
you
returned
it
was
past
five
.
”
“
Mdlle
.
wished
to
speak
with
me
,
monsieur
.
”
“
Indeed
!
on
what
subject
?
if
one
may
ask
.
”
“
Mademoiselle
talked
about
nothing
,
monsieur
.
”
“
A
fertile
topic
!
and
did
she
discourse
thereon
in
the
schoolroom
,
before
the
pupils
?
”
“
No
;
like
you
,
monsieur
,
she
asked
me
to
walk
into
her
parlour
.
”
“
And
Madame
Reuter
—
the
old
duenna
—
my
mother’s
gossip
,
was
there
,
of
course
?
”
“
No
,
monsieur
;
I
had
the
honour
of
being
quite
alone
with
mademoiselle
.
”
“
C’est
joli
—
cela
,
”
observed
M
.
Pelet
,
and
he
smiled
and
looked
into
the
fire
.
“
Honi
soit
qui
mal
y
pense
,
”
murmured
I
,
significantly
.
“
Je
connais
un
peu
ma
petite
voisine
—
voyez-vous
.
”
“
In
that
case
,
monsieur
will
be
able
to
aid
me
in
finding
out
what
was
mademoiselle’s
reason
for
making
me
sit
before
her
sofa
one
mortal
hour
,
listening
to
the
most
copious
and
fluent
dissertation
on
the
merest
frivolities
.
”
“
She
was
sounding
your
character
.
”
“
I
thought
so
,
monsieur
.
”
“
Did
she
find
out
your
weak
point
?
”
“
What
is
my
weak
point
?
”
“
Why
,
the
sentimental
.
Any
woman
sinking
her
shaft
deep
enough
,
will
at
last
reach
a
fathomless
spring
of
sensibility
in
thy
breast
,
Crimsworth
.
”
I
felt
the
blood
stir
about
my
heart
and
rise
warm
to
my
cheek
.
“
Some
women
might
,
monsieur
.
”
“
Is
Mdlle
.
Reuter
of
the
number
?
Come
,
speak
frankly
,
mon
fils
;
elle
est
encore
jeune
,
plus
agee
que
toi
peut-etre
,
mais
juste
assey
pour
unir
la
tendresse
d’une
petite
maman
a
l’amour
d’une
epouse
devouee
;
n’est-ce
pas
que
cela
t’irait
superieurement
?
”
“
No
,
monsieur
;
I
should
like
my
wife
to
be
my
wife
,
and
not
half
my
mother
.
”
“
She
is
then
a
little
too
old
for
you
?
”
“
No
,
monsieur
,
not
a
day
too
old
if
she
suited
me
in
other
things
.
”
“
In
what
does
she
not
suit
you
,
William
?
She
is
personally
agreeable
,
is
she
not
?
”
“
Very
;
her
hair
and
complexion
are
just
what
I
admire
;
and
her
turn
of
form
,
though
quite
Belgian
,
is
full
of
grace
.
”
“
Bravo
!
and
her
face
?
her
features
?
How
do
you
like
them
?
”
“
A
little
harsh
,
especially
her
mouth
.
”
“
Ah
,
yes
!
her
mouth
,
”
said
M
.
Pelet
,
and
he
chuckled
inwardly
.
“
There
is
character
about
her
mouth
—
firmness
—
but
she
has
a
very
pleasant
smile
;
don’t
you
think
so
?
”
“
Rather
crafty
.
”
“
True
,
but
that
expression
of
craft
is
owing
to
her
eyebrows
;
have
you
remarked
her
eyebrows
?
”
I
answered
that
I
had
not
.
“
You
have
not
seen
her
looking
down
then
?
”
said
he
.
“
No.
”
“
It
is
a
treat
,
notwithstanding
.
Observe
her
when
she
has
some
knitting
,
or
some
other
woman’s
work
in
hand
,
and
sits
the
image
of
peace
,
calmly
intent
on
her
needles
and
her
silk
,
some
discussion
meantime
going
on
around
her
,
in
the
course
of
which
peculiarities
of
character
are
being
developed
,
or
important
interests
canvassed
;
she
takes
no
part
in
it
;
her
humble
,
feminine
mind
is
wholly
with
her
knitting
;
none
of
her
features
move
;
she
neither
presumes
to
smile
approval
,
nor
frown
disapprobation
;
her
little
hands
assiduously
ply
their
unpretending
task
;
if
she
can
only
get
this
purse
finished
,
or
this
bonnet-grec
completed
,
it
is
enough
for
her
.
If
gentlemen
approach
her
chair
,
a
deeper
quiescence
,
a
meeker
modesty
settles
on
her
features
,
and
clothes
her
general
mien
;
observe
then
her
eyebrows
,
et
dites-moi
s’il
n’y
a
pas
du
chat
dans
l’un
et
du
renard
dans
l’autre
.
”
“
I
will
take
careful
notice
the
first
opportunity
,
”
said
I
.
“
And
then
,
”
continued
M
.
Pelet
,
“
the
eyelid
will
flicker
,
the
light-coloured
lashes
be
lifted
a
second
,
and
a
blue
eye
,
glancing
out
from
under
the
screen
,
will
take
its
brief
,
sly
,
searching
survey
,
and
retreat
again
.
”
I
smiled
,
and
so
did
Pelet
,
and
after
a
few
minutes’
silence
,
I
asked
:
“
Will
she
ever
marry
,
do
you
think
?
”
“
Marry
!
Will
birds
pair
?
Of
course
it
is
both
her
intention
and
resolution
to
marry
when
she
finds
a
suitable
match
,
and
no
one
is
better
aware
than
herself
of
the
sort
of
impression
she
is
capable
of
producing
;
no
one
likes
better
to
captivate
in
a
quiet
way
.
I
am
mistaken
if
she
will
not
yet
leave
the
print
of
her
stealing
steps
on
thy
heart
,
Crimsworth
.
”
“
Of
her
steps
?
Confound
it
,
no
!
My
heart
is
not
a
plank
to
be
walked
on
.
”
“
But
the
soft
touch
of
a
patte
de
velours
will
do
it
no
harm
.
”
“
She
offers
me
no
patte
de
velours
;
she
is
all
form
and
reserve
with
me
.
”
“
That
to
begin
with
;
let
respect
be
the
foundation
,
affection
the
first
floor
,
love
the
superstructure
;
Mdlle
.
Reuter
is
a
skilful
architect
.
”
“
And
interest
,
M
.
Pelet
—
interest
.
Will
not
mademoiselle
consider
that
point
?
”
“
Yes
,
yes
,
no
doubt
;
it
will
be
the
cement
between
every
stone
.
And
now
we
have
discussed
the
directress
,
what
of
the
pupils
?
N’y
a-t-il
pas
de
belles
etudes
parmi
ces
jeunes
tetes
?
”
“
Studies
of
character
?
Yes
;
curious
ones
,
at
least
,
I
imagine
;
but
one
cannot
divine
much
from
a
first
interview
.
”
“
Ah
,
you
affect
discretion
;
but
tell
me
now
,
were
you
not
a
little
abashed
before
these
blooming
young
creatures
?
”
“
At
first
,
yes
;
but
I
rallied
and
got
through
with
all
due
sang-froid
.
”
“
I
don’t
believe
you
.
”
“
It
is
true
,
notwithstanding
.
At
first
I
thought
them
angels
,
but
they
did
not
leave
me
long
under
that
delusion
;
three
of
the
eldest
and
handsomest
undertook
the
task
of
setting
me
right
,
and
they
managed
so
cleverly
that
in
five
minutes
I
knew
them
,
at
least
,
for
what
they
were
—
three
arrant
coquettes
.
”
“
Je
les
connais
!
”
exclaimed
M
.
Pelet
.
“
Elles
sont
toujours
au
premier
rang
a
l’eglise
et
a
la
promenade
;
une
blonde
superbe
,
une
jolie
espiegle
,
une
belle
brune
.
”
“
Exactly
.
”
“
Lovely
creatures
all
of
them
—
heads
for
artists
;
what
a
group
they
would
make
,
taken
together
!
Eulalie
(
I
know
their
names
)
,
with
her
smooth
braided
hair
and
calm
ivory
brow
.
Hortense
,
with
her
rich
chesnut
locks
so
luxuriantly
knotted
,
plaited
,
twisted
,
as
if
she
did
not
know
how
to
dispose
of
all
their
abundance
,
with
her
vermilion
lips
,
damask
cheek
,
and
roguish
laughing
eye
.
And
Caroline
de
Blemont
!
Ah
,
there
is
beauty
!
beauty
in
perfection
.
What
a
cloud
of
sable
curls
about
the
face
of
a
houri
!
What
fascinating
lips
!
What
glorious
black
eyes
!
Your
Byron
would
have
worshipped
her
,
and
you
—
you
cold
,
frigid
islander
!
—
you
played
the
austere
,
the
insensible
in
the
presence
of
an
Aphrodite
so
exquisite
?
”
I
might
have
laughed
at
the
director’s
enthusiasm
had
I
believed
it
real
,
but
there
was
something
in
his
tone
which
indicated
got-up
raptures
.
I
felt
he
was
only
affecting
fervour
in
order
to
put
me
off
my
guard
,
to
induce
me
to
come
out
in
return
,
so
I
scarcely
even
smiled
.
He
went
on
:
“
Confess
,
William
,
do
not
the
mere
good
looks
of
Zoraide
Reuter
appear
dowdyish
and
commonplace
compared
with
the
splendid
charms
of
some
of
her
pupils
?
”
The
question
discomposed
me
,
but
I
now
felt
plainly
that
my
principal
was
endeavouring
(
for
reasons
best
known
to
himself
—
at
that
time
I
could
not
fathom
them
)
to
excite
ideas
and
wishes
in
my
mind
alien
to
what
was
right
and
honourable
.
The
iniquity
of
the
instigation
proved
its
antidote
,
and
when
he
further
added
:
—
“
Each
of
those
three
beautiful
girls
will
have
a
handsome
fortune
;
and
with
a
little
address
,
a
gentlemanlike
,
intelligent
young
fellow
like
you
might
make
himself
master
of
the
hand
,
heart
,
and
purse
of
any
one
of
the
trio
.
”
I
replied
by
a
look
and
an
interrogative
“
Monsieur
?
”
which
startled
him
.
He
laughed
a
forced
laugh
,
affirmed
that
he
had
only
been
joking
,
and
demanded
whether
I
could
possibly
have
thought
him
in
earnest
.
Just
then
the
bell
rang
;
the
play-hour
was
over
;
it
was
an
evening
on
which
M
.
Pelet
was
accustomed
to
read
passages
from
the
drama
and
the
belles
lettres
to
his
pupils
.
He
did
not
wait
for
my
answer
,
but
rising
,
left
the
room
,
humming
as
he
went
some
gay
strain
of
Beranger’s
.
CHAPTER
XII
.
DAILY
,
as
I
continued
my
attendance
at
the
seminary
of
Mdlle
.
Reuter
,
did
I
find
fresh
occasions
to
compare
the
ideal
with
the
real
.
What
had
I
known
of
female
character
previously
to
my
arrival
at
Brussels
?
Precious
little
.
And
what
was
my
notion
of
it
?
Something
vague
,
slight
,
gauzy
,
glittering
;
now
when
I
came
in
contact
with
it
I
found
it
to
be
a
palpable
substance
enough
;
very
hard
too
sometimes
,
and
often
heavy
;
there
was
metal
in
it
,
both
lead
and
iron
.
Let
the
idealists
,
the
dreamers
about
earthly
angel
and
human
flowers
,
just
look
here
while
I
open
my
portfolio
and
show
them
a
sketch
or
two
,
pencilled
after
nature
.
I
took
these
sketches
in
the
second-class
schoolroom
of
Mdlle
.
Reuter’s
establishment
,
where
about
a
hundred
specimens
of
the
genus
“
jeune
fille
”
collected
together
offered
a
fertile
variety
of
subject
.
A
miscellaneous
assortment
they
were
,
differing
both
in
caste
and
country
;
as
I
sat
on
my
estrade
and
glanced
over
the
long
range
of
desks
,
I
had
under
my
eye
French
,
English
,
Belgians
,
Austrians
,
and
Prussians
.
The
majority
belonged
to
the
class
bourgeois
;
but
there
were
many
countesses
,
there
were
the
daughters
of
two
generals
and
of
several
colonels
,
captains
,
and
government
employés
;
these
ladies
sat
side
by
side
with
young
females
destined
to
be
demoiselles
de
magasins
,
and
with
some
Flamandes
,
genuine
aborigines
of
the
country
.
In
dress
all
were
nearly
similar
,
and
in
manners
there
was
small
difference
;
exceptions
there
were
to
the
general
rule
,
but
the
majority
gave
the
tone
to
the
establishment
,
and
that
tone
was
rough
,
boisterous
,
masked
by
a
point-blank
disregard
of
all
forbearance
towards
each
other
or
their
teachers
;
an
eager
pursuit
by
each
individual
of
her
own
interest
and
convenience
;
and
a
coarse
indifference
to
the
interest
and
convenience
of
every
one
else
.
Most
of
them
could
lie
with
audacity
when
it
appeared
advantageous
to
do
so
.
All
understood
the
art
of
speaking
fair
when
a
point
was
to
be
gained
,
and
could
with
consummate
skill
and
at
a
moment’s
notice
turn
the
cold
shoulder
the
instant
civility
ceased
to
be
profitable
.
Very
little
open
quarrelling
ever
took
place
amongst
them
;
but
backbiting
and
talebearing
were
universal
.
Close
friendships
were
forbidden
by
the
rules
of
the
school
,
and
no
one
girl
seemed
to
cultivate
more
regard
for
another
than
was
just
necessary
to
secure
a
companion
when
solitude
would
have
been
irksome
.
They
were
each
and
all
supposed
to
have
been
reared
in
utter
unconsciousness
of
vice
.
The
precautions
used
to
keep
them
ignorant
,
if
not
innocent
,
were
innumerable
.
How
was
it
,
then
,
that
scarcely
one
of
those
girls
having
attained
the
age
of
fourteen
could
look
a
man
in
the
face
with
modesty
and
propriety
?
An
air
of
bold
,
impudent
flirtation
,
or
a
loose
,
silly
leer
,
was
sure
to
answer
the
most
ordinary
glance
from
a
masculine
eye
.
I
know
nothing
of
the
arcana
of
the
Roman
Catholic
religion
,
and
I
am
not
a
bigot
in
matters
of
theology
,
but
I
suspect
the
root
of
this
precocious
impurity
,
so
obvious
,
so
general
in
Popish
countries
,
is
to
be
found
in
the
discipline
,
if
not
the
doctrines
of
the
Church
of
Rome
.
I
record
what
I
have
seen
:
these
girls
belonged
to
what
are
called
the
respectable
ranks
of
society
;
they
had
all
been
carefully
brought
up
,
yet
was
the
mass
of
them
mentally
depraved
.
So
much
for
the
general
view
:
now
for
one
or
two
selected
specimens
.
The
first
picture
is
a
full
length
of
Aurelia
Koslow
,
a
German
fraulein
,
or
rather
a
half-breed
between
German
and
Russian
.
She
is
eighteen
years
of
age
,
and
has
been
sent
to
Brussels
to
finish
her
education
;
she
is
of
middle
size
,
stiffly
made
,
body
long
,
legs
short
,
bust
much
developed
but
not
compactly
moulded
,
waist
disproportionately
compressed
by
an
inhumanly
braced
corset
,
dress
carefully
arranged
,
large
feet
tortured
into
small
bottines
,
head
small
,
hair
smoothed
,
braided
,
oiled
,
and
gummed
to
perfection
;
very
low
forehead
,
very
diminutive
and
vindictive
grey
eyes
,
somewhat
Tartar
features
,
rather
flat
nose
,
rather
high-cheek
bones
,
yet
the
ensemble
not
positively
ugly
;
tolerably
good
complexion
.
So
much
for
person
.
As
to
mind
,
deplorably
ignorant
and
ill-informed
:
incapable
of
writing
or
speaking
correctly
even
German
,
her
native
tongue
,
a
dunce
in
French
,
and
her
attempts
at
learning
English
a
mere
farce
,
yet
she
has
been
at
school
twelve
years
;
but
as
she
invariably
gets
her
exercises
,
of
every
description
,
done
by
a
fellow
pupil
,
and
reads
her
lessons
off
a
book
concealed
in
her
lap
,
it
is
not
wonderful
that
her
progress
has
been
so
snail-like
.
I
do
not
know
what
Aurelia’s
daily
habits
of
life
are
,
because
I
have
not
the
opportunity
of
observing
her
at
all
times
;
but
from
what
I
see
of
the
state
of
her
desk
,
books
,
and
papers
,
I
should
say
she
is
slovenly
and
even
dirty
;
her
outward
dress
,
as
I
have
said
,
is
well
attended
to
,
but
in
passing
behind
her
bench
,
I
have
remarked
that
her
neck
is
gray
for
want
of
washing
,
and
her
hair
,
so
glossy
with
gum
and
grease
,
is
not
such
as
one
feels
tempted
to
pass
the
hand
over
,
much
less
to
run
the
fingers
through
.
Aurelia’s
conduct
in
class
,
at
least
when
I
am
present
,
is
something
extraordinary
,
considered
as
an
index
of
girlish
innocence
.
The
moment
I
enter
the
room
,
she
nudges
her
next
neighbour
and
indulges
in
a
half-suppressed
laugh
.
As
I
take
my
seat
on
the
estrade
,
she
fixes
her
eye
on
me
;
she
seems
resolved
to
attract
,
and
,
if
possible
,
monopolize
my
notice
:
to
this
end
she
launches
at
me
all
sorts
of
looks
,
languishing
,
provoking
,
leering
,
laughing
.
As
I
am
found
quite
proof
against
this
sort
of
artillery
—
for
we
scorn
what
,
unasked
,
is
lavishly
offered
—
she
has
recourse
to
the
expedient
of
making
noises
;
sometimes
she
sighs
,
sometimes
groans
,
sometimes
utters
inarticulate
sounds
,
for
which
language
has
no
name
.
If
,
in
walking
up
the
schoolroom
,
I
pass
near
her
,
she
puts
out
her
foot
that
it
may
touch
mine
;
if
I
do
not
happen
to
observe
the
manoeuvre
,
and
my
boot
comes
in
contact
with
her
brodequin
,
she
affects
to
fall
into
convulsions
of
suppressed
laughter
;
if
I
notice
the
snare
and
avoid
it
,
she
expresses
her
mortification
in
sullen
muttering
,
where
I
hear
myself
abused
in
bad
French
,
pronounced
with
an
intolerable
Low
German
accent
.
Not
far
from
Mdlle
.
Koslow
sits
another
young
lady
by
name
Adele
Dronsart
:
this
is
a
Belgian
,
rather
low
of
stature
,
in
form
heavy
,
with
broad
waist
,
short
neck
and
limbs
,
good
red
and
white
complexion
,
features
well
chiselled
and
regular
,
well-cut
eyes
of
a
clear
brown
colour
,
light
brown
hair
,
good
teeth
,
age
not
much
above
fifteen
,
but
as
full-grown
as
a
stout
young
Englishwoman
of
twenty
.
This
portrait
gives
the
idea
of
a
somewhat
dumpy
but
good-looking
damsel
,
does
it
not
?
Well
,
when
I
looked
along
the
row
of
young
heads
,
my
eye
generally
stopped
at
this
of
Adele’s
;
her
gaze
was
ever
waiting
for
mine
,
and
it
frequently
succeeded
in
arresting
it
.
She
was
an
unnatural-looking
being
—
so
young
,
fresh
,
blooming
,
yet
so
Gorgon-like
.
Suspicion
,
sullen
ill-temper
were
on
her
forehead
,
vicious
propensities
in
her
eye
,
envy
and
panther-like
deceit
about
her
mouth
.
In
general
she
sat
very
still
;
her
massive
shape
looked
as
if
it
could
not
bend
much
,
nor
did
her
large
head
—
so
broad
at
the
base
,
so
narrow
towards
the
top
—
seem
made
to
turn
readily
on
her
short
neck
.
She
had
but
two
varieties
of
expression
;
the
prevalent
one
a
forbidding
,
dissatisfied
scowl
,
varied
sometimes
by
a
most
pernicious
and
perfidious
smile
.
She
was
shunned
by
her
fellow-pupils
,
for
,
bad
as
many
of
them
were
,
few
were
as
bad
as
she
.
Aurelia
and
Adele
were
in
the
first
division
of
the
second
class
;
the
second
division
was
headed
by
a
pensionnaire
named
Juanna
Trista
.
This
girl
was
of
mixed
Belgian
and
Spanish
origin
;
her
Flemish
mother
was
dead
,
her
Catalonian
father
was
a
merchant
residing
in
the
—
—
Isles
,
where
Juanna
had
been
born
and
whence
she
was
sent
to
Europe
to
be
educated
.
I
wonder
that
any
one
,
looking
at
that
girl’s
head
and
countenance
,
would
have
received
her
under
their
roof
.
She
had
precisely
the
same
shape
of
skull
as
Pope
Alexander
the
Sixth
;
her
organs
of
benevolence
,
veneration
,
conscientiousness
,
adhesiveness
,
were
singularly
small
,
those
of
self-esteem
,
firmness
,
destructiveness
,
combativeness
,
preposterously
large
;
her
head
sloped
up
in
the
penthouse
shape
,
was
contracted
about
the
forehead
,
and
prominent
behind
;
she
had
rather
good
,
though
large
and
marked
features
;
her
temperament
was
fibrous
and
bilious
,
her
complexion
pale
and
dark
,
hair
and
eyes
black
,
form
angular
and
rigid
but
proportionate
,
age
fifteen
.
Juanna
was
not
very
thin
,
but
she
had
a
gaunt
visage
,
and
her
“
regard
”
was
fierce
and
hungry
;
narrow
as
was
her
brow
,
it
presented
space
enough
for
the
legible
graving
of
two
words
,
Mutiny
and
Hate
;
in
some
one
of
her
other
lineaments
I
think
the
eye
—
cowardice
had
also
its
distinct
cipher
.
Mdlle
.
Trista
thought
fit
to
trouble
my
first
lessons
with
a
coarse
work-day
sort
of
turbulence
;
she
made
noises
with
her
mouth
like
a
horse
,
she
ejected
her
saliva
,
she
uttered
brutal
expressions
;
behind
and
below
her
were
seated
a
band
of
very
vulgar
,
inferior-looking
Flamandes
,
including
two
or
three
examples
of
that
deformity
of
person
and
imbecility
of
intellect
whose
frequency
in
the
Low
Countries
would
seem
to
furnish
proof
that
the
climate
is
such
as
to
induce
degeneracy
of
the
human
mind
and
body
;
these
,
I
soon
found
,
were
completely
under
her
influence
,
and
with
their
aid
she
got
up
and
sustained
a
swinish
tumult
,
which
I
was
constrained
at
last
to
quell
by
ordering
her
and
two
of
her
tools
to
rise
from
their
seats
,
and
,
having
kept
them
standing
five
minutes
,
turning
them
bodily
out
of
the
schoolroom
:
the
accomplices
into
a
large
place
adjoining
called
the
grands
salle
;
the
principal
into
a
cabinet
,
of
which
I
closed
the
door
and
pocketed
the
key
.
This
judgment
I
executed
in
the
presence
of
Mdlle
.
Reuter
,
who
looked
much
aghast
at
beholding
so
decided
a
proceeding
—
the
most
severe
that
had
ever
been
ventured
on
in
her
establishment
.
Her
look
of
affright
I
answered
with
one
of
composure
,
and
finally
with
a
smile
,
which
perhaps
flattered
,
and
certainly
soothed
her
.
Juanna
Trista
remained
in
Europe
long
enough
to
repay
,
by
malevolence
and
ingratitude
,
all
who
had
ever
done
her
a
good
turn
;
and
she
then
went
to
join
her
father
in
the
—
—
Isles
,
exulting
in
the
thought
that
she
should
there
have
slaves
,
whom
,
as
she
said
,
she
could
kick
and
strike
at
will
.
These
three
pictures
are
from
the
life
.
I
possess
others
,
as
marked
and
as
little
agreeable
,
but
I
will
spare
my
reader
the
exhibition
of
them
.
Doubtless
it
will
be
thought
that
I
ought
now
,
by
way
of
contrast
,
to
show
something
charming
;
some
gentle
virgin
head
,
circled
with
a
halo
,
some
sweet
personification
of
innocence
,
clasping
the
dove
of
peace
to
her
bosom
.
No
:
I
saw
nothing
of
the
sort
,
and
therefore
cannot
portray
it
.
The
pupil
in
the
school
possessing
the
happiest
disposition
was
a
young
girl
from
the
country
,
Louise
Path
;
she
was
sufficiently
benevolent
and
obliging
,
but
not
well
taught
nor
well
mannered
;
moreover
,
the
plague-spot
of
dissimulation
was
in
her
also
;
honour
and
principle
were
unknown
to
her
,
she
had
scarcely
heard
their
names
.
The
least
exceptionable
pupil
was
the
poor
little
Sylvie
I
have
mentioned
once
before
.
Sylvie
was
gentle
in
manners
,
intelligent
in
mind
;
she
was
even
sincere
,
as
far
as
her
religion
would
permit
her
to
be
so
,
but
her
physical
organization
was
defective
;
weak
health
stunted
her
growth
and
chilled
her
spirits
,
and
then
,
destined
as
she
was
for
the
cloister
,
her
whole
soul
was
warped
to
a
conventual
bias
,
and
in
the
tame
,
trained
subjection
of
her
manner
,
one
read
that
she
had
already
prepared
herself
for
her
future
course
of
life
,
by
giving
up
her
independence
of
thought
and
action
into
the
hands
of
some
despotic
confessor
.
She
permitted
herself
no
original
opinion
,
no
preference
of
companion
or
employment
;
in
everything
she
was
guided
by
another
.
With
a
pale
,
passive
,
automaton
air
,
she
went
about
all
day
long
doing
what
she
was
bid
;
never
what
she
liked
,
or
what
,
from
innate
conviction
,
she
thought
it
right
to
do
.
The
poor
little
future
religieuse
had
been
early
taught
to
make
the
dictates
of
her
own
reason
and
conscience
quite
subordinate
to
the
will
of
her
spiritual
director
.
She
was
the
model
pupil
of
Mdlle
.
Reuter’s
establishment
;
pale
,
blighted
image
,
where
life
lingered
feebly
,
but
whence
the
soul
had
been
conjured
by
Romish
wizard-craft
!
A
few
English
pupils
there
were
in
this
school
,
and
these
might
be
divided
into
two
classes
.
1st
.
The
continental
English
—
the
daughters
chiefly
of
broken
adventurers
,
whom
debt
or
dishonour
had
driven
from
their
own
country
.
These
poor
girls
had
never
known
the
advantages
of
settled
homes
,
decorous
example
,
or
honest
Protestant
education
;
resident
a
few
months
now
in
one
Catholic
school
,
now
in
another
,
as
their
parents
wandered
from
land
to
land
—
from
France
to
Germany
,
from
Germany
to
Belgium
—
they
had
picked
up
some
scanty
instruction
,
many
bad
habits
,
losing
every
notion
even
of
the
first
elements
of
religion
and
morals
,
and
acquiring
an
imbecile
indifference
to
every
sentiment
that
can
elevate
humanity
;
they
were
distinguishable
by
an
habitual
look
of
sullen
dejection
,
the
result
of
crushed
self-respect
and
constant
browbeating
from
their
Popish
fellow-pupils
,
who
hated
them
as
English
,
and
scorned
them
as
heretics
.
The
second
class
were
British
English
.
Of
these
I
did
not
encounter
half
a
dozen
during
the
whole
time
of
my
attendance
at
the
seminary
;
their
characteristics
were
clean
but
careless
dress
,
ill-arranged
hair
(
compared
with
the
tight
and
trim
foreigners
)
,
erect
carriage
,
flexible
figures
,
white
and
taper
hands
,
features
more
irregular
,
but
also
more
intellectual
than
those
of
the
Belgians
,
grave
and
modest
countenances
,
a
general
air
of
native
propriety
and
decency
;
by
this
last
circumstance
alone
I
could
at
a
glance
distinguish
the
daughter
of
Albion
and
nursling
of
Protestantism
from
the
foster-child
of
Rome
,
the
protégée
of
Jesuistry
:
proud
,
too
,
was
the
aspect
of
these
British
girls
;
at
once
envied
and
ridiculed
by
their
continental
associates
,
they
warded
off
insult
with
austere
civility
,
and
met
hate
with
mute
disdain
;
they
eschewed
company-keeping
,
and
in
the
midst
of
numbers
seemed
to
dwell
isolated
.
The
teachers
presiding
over
this
mixed
multitude
were
three
in
number
,
all
French
—
their
names
Mdlles
.
Zephyrine
,
Pelagie
,
and
Suzette
;
the
two
last
were
commonplace
personages
enough
;
their
look
was
ordinary
,
their
manner
was
ordinary
,
their
temper
was
ordinary
,
their
thoughts
,
feelings
,
and
views
were
all
ordinary
—
were
I
to
write
a
chapter
on
the
subject
I
could
not
elucidate
it
further
.
Zephyrine
was
somewhat
more
distinguished
in
appearance
and
deportment
than
Pelagie
and
Suzette
,
but
in
character
genuine
Parisian
coquette
,
perfidious
,
mercenary
,
and
dry-hearted
.
A
fourth
maitresse
I
sometimes
saw
who
seemed
to
come
daily
to
teach
needlework
,
or
netting
,
or
lace-mending
,
or
some
such
flimsy
art
;
but
of
her
I
never
had
more
than
a
passing
glimpse
,
as
she
sat
in
the
carré
,
with
her
frames
and
some
dozen
of
the
elder
pupils
about
her
,
consequently
I
had
no
opportunity
of
studying
her
character
,
or
even
of
observing
her
person
much
;
the
latter
,
I
remarked
,
had
a
very
English
air
for
a
maitresse
,
otherwise
it
was
not
striking
;
of
character
I
should
think
she
possessed
but
little
,
as
her
pupils
seemed
constantly
“
en
revolte
”
against
her
authority
.
She
did
not
reside
in
the
house
;
her
name
,
I
think
,
was
Mdlle
.
Henri
.
Amidst
this
assemblage
of
all
that
was
insignificant
and
defective
,
much
that
was
vicious
and
repulsive
(
by
that
last
epithet
many
would
have
described
the
two
or
three
stiff
,
silent
,
decently
behaved
,
ill-dressed
British
girls
)
,
the
sensible
,
sagacious
,
affable
directress
shone
like
a
steady
star
over
a
marsh
full
of
Jack-o’-lanthorns
;
profoundly
aware
of
her
superiority
,
she
derived
an
inward
bliss
from
that
consciousness
which
sustained
her
under
all
the
care
and
responsibility
inseparable
from
her
position
;
it
kept
her
temper
calm
,
her
brow
smooth
,
her
manner
tranquil
.
She
liked
—
as
who
would
not
?
—
on
entering
the
school-room
,
to
feel
that
her
sole
presence
sufficed
to
diffuse
that
order
and
quiet
which
all
the
remonstrances
,
and
even
commands
,
of
her
underlings
frequently
failed
to
enforce
;
she
liked
to
stand
in
comparison
,
or
rather
—
contrast
,
with
those
who
surrounded
her
,
and
to
know
that
in
personal
as
well
as
mental
advantages
,
she
bore
away
the
undisputed
palm
of
preference
—
(
the
three
teachers
were
all
plain
.
)
Her
pupils
she
managed
with
such
indulgence
and
address
,
taking
always
on
herself
the
office
of
recompenser
and
eulogist
,
and
abandoning
to
her
subalterns
every
invidious
task
of
blame
and
punishment
,
that
they
all
regarded
her
with
deference
,
if
not
with
affection
;
her
teachers
did
not
love
her
,
but
they
submitted
because
they
were
her
inferiors
in
everything
;
the
various
masters
who
attended
her
school
were
each
and
all
in
some
way
or
other
under
her
influence
;
over
one
she
had
acquired
power
by
her
skilful
management
of
his
bad
temper
;
over
another
by
little
attentions
to
his
petty
caprices
;
a
third
she
had
subdued
