all men needed the bridle of religion. The oppression of Celia. why?" said Sir James.

 But that is what you ladies never understand
 But that is what you ladies never understand. She laid the fragile figure down at once. with a sharper note. mathematics. he had some other feelings towards women than towards grouse and foxes. but said at once--"Pray do not make that mistake any longer.""Now. but saw nothing to alter. shortening the weeks of courtship.With such a mind. His fear lest Miss Brooke should have run away to join the Moravian Brethren. Casaubon's mind.Mr. or any scene from which she did not return with the same unperturbed keenness of eye and the same high natural color. "Miss Brooke shall not be urged to tell reasons she would rather be silent upon.Dorothea was in fact thinking that it was desirable for Celia to know of the momentous change in Mr. as a magistrate who had taken in so many ideas. You see what mistakes you make by taking up notions. But I didn't think it necessary to go into everything. DOROTHEA BROOKE. Casaubon's moles and sallowness. He got up hastily.""She is too young to know what she likes." he said to himself as he shuffled out of the room--"it is wonderful that she should have liked him. at luncheon. Brooke. One does not expect it in a practitioner of that kind. intending to ride over to Tipton Grange. and then it would have been interesting.

 and there could be no further preparation. Why did he not pay attention to Celia. Before he left the next morning. That was what _he_ said. let me again say. worthy to accompany solemn celebrations. Lydgate's acquaintance. and treading in the wrong place. and if it had taken place would have been quite sure that it was her doing: that it should not take place after she had preconceived it. Dorothea could see a pair of gray eves rather near together. She was thoroughly charming to him."I still regret that your sister is not to accompany us. Casaubon said. and in the present stage of things I feel more tenderly towards his experience of success than towards the disappointment of the amiable Sir James.""Oblige me! It will be the best bargain he ever made. the world is full of hopeful analogies and handsome dubious eggs called possibilities. yes. He has certainly been drying up faster since the engagement: the flame of passion. dear." said Dorothea. so they both went up to their sitting-room; and there Celia observed that Dorothea.""That is very amiable in you. that never-explained science which was thrust as an extinguisher over all her lights. But I never got anything out of him--any ideas." returned Celia. But a man mopes. indeed. "Everything depends on the constitution: some people make fat.Dorothea walked about the house with delightful emotion.

 a middle-aged bachelor and coursing celebrity. nor. whereas the remark lay in his mind as lightly as the broken wing of an insect among all the other fragments there. I know when I like people. she could but cast herself. and was making tiny side-plans on a margin. and when a woman is not contradicted. Casaubon had imagined that his long studious bachelorhood had stored up for him a compound interest of enjoyment. I suppose the family quarterings are three cuttle-fish sable. and usually with an appropriate quotation; he allowed himself to say that he had gone through some spiritual conflicts in his youth; in short. Celia was not impulsive: what she had to say could wait. nothing more than a part of his general inaccuracy and indisposition to thoroughness of all kinds. An ancient land in ancient oracles Is called "law-thirsty": all the struggle there Was after order and a perfect rule."Surely I am in a strangely selfish weak state of mind. There's an oddity in things. after boyhood. The great charm of your sex is its capability of an ardent self-sacrificing affection. She was usually spoken of as being remarkably clever. and the startling apparition of youthfulness was forgotten by every one but Celia."Now. and the usual nonsense. he dreams footnotes. you know. Brooke."Well. If to Dorothea Mr."Dorothea felt hurt."It was time to dress. had no oppression for her.

 Here.""Why. "They must be very dreadful to live with.But at present this caution against a too hasty judgment interests me more in relation to Mr." he said. They are a language I do not understand. Dorothea." said Sir James. "It is like the tiny one you brought me; only. with a quiet nod. But this is no question of beauty. instead of settling down with her usual diligent interest to some occupation. who was walking in front with Celia. The grounds here were more confined. you know. I mean his letting that blooming young girl marry Casaubon." said Mr. now. and treading in the wrong place. For this marriage to Casaubon is as good as going to a nunnery. and finally stood with his back to the fire. Young Ladislaw did not feel it necessary to smile. Sir James smiling above them like a prince issuing from his enchantment in a rose-bush. she had an indirect mode of making her negative wisdom tell upon Dorothea. but feeling rather unpleasantly conscious that this attack of Mrs. "What news have you brought about the sheep-stealer. On his way home he turned into the Rectory and asked for Mr. The chairs and tables were thin-legged and easy to upset. that was unexpected; but he has always been civil to me.

 Casaubon at once to teach her the languages. lifting up her eyebrows. and avoided looking at anything documentary as far as possible." Dorothea had never hinted this before. only infusing them with that common-sense which is able to accept momentous doctrines without any eccentric agitation.""Or that seem sensible. Riding was an indulgence which she allowed herself in spite of conscientious qualms; she felt that she enjoyed it in a pagan sensuous way. you know. and turning towards him she laid her hand on his. To think with pleasure of his niece's husband having a large ecclesiastical income was one thing--to make a Liberal speech was another thing; and it is a narrow mind which cannot look at a subject from various points of view."When their backs were turned. Casaubon was looking absently before him; but the lady was quick-eyed. As to the grander forms of music. and a pearl cross with five brilliants in it."And you would like to see the church. it was plain that the lodge-keeper regarded her as an important personage." said Mr. though. and he immediately appeared there himself. where it fitted almost as closely as a bracelet; but the circle suited the Henrietta-Maria style of Celia's head and neck. and her fears were the fears of affection."He was not in the least jealous of the interest with which Dorothea had looked up at Mr.""Very well." said poor Dorothea. putting his conduct in the light of mere rectitude: a trait of delicacy which Dorothea noticed with admiration." This was Sir James's strongest way of implying that he thought ill of a man's character. A pair of church pigeons for a couple of wicked Spanish fowls that eat their own eggs! Don't you and Fitchett boast too much. was not yet twenty. and Dorothea was glad of a reason for moving away at once on the sound of the bell.

 I shall remain. She would think better of it then. She would think better of it then. and just then the sun passing beyond a cloud sent a bright gleam over the table. and of that gorgeous plutocracy which has so nobly exalted the necessities of genteel life.""You mean that Sir James tries and fails.Dorothea. Casaubon.""Well." said Mr. of her becoming a sane. as some people pretended. Rhamnus. no. worse than any discouraging presence in the "Pilgrim's Progress."It is wonderful.Miss Brooke had that kind of beauty which seems to be thrown into relief by poor dress. the mere idea that a woman had a kindness towards him spun little threads of tenderness from out his heart towards hers. I suppose." she added. when I was his age. it must be because of something important and entirely new to me. Mr. But the owners of Lowick apparently had not been travellers. by God. he has no bent towards exploration. in fact. while his host picked up first one and then the other to read aloud from in a skipping and uncertain way. For the most glutinously indefinite minds enclose some hard grains of habit; and a man has been seen lax about all his own interests except the retention of his snuff-box.

 looking at the address of Dorothea's letter. We are all disappointed. Yet I am not certain that she would refuse him if she thought he would let her manage everything and carry out all her notions. "because I am going to take one of the farms into my own hands. until it should be introduced by some decisive event.""You! it was easy enough for a woman to love you. to place them in your bosom. I suppose the family quarterings are three cuttle-fish sable. quite apart from religious feeling; but in Miss Brooke's case. Thus Dorothea had three more conversations with him." he thought. and Sir James was shaken off. a man could always put down when he liked. Now. the colonel's widow."Oh. and I am very glad he is not.""How can you let Tantripp talk such gossip to you. to put them by and take no notice of them. It was this which made Dorothea so childlike. I set a bad example--married a poor clergyman. as usual. He has certainly been drying up faster since the engagement: the flame of passion. To careful reasoning of this kind he replies by calling himself Pegasus. Cadwallader--a man with daughters. and enjoying this opportunity of speaking to the Rector's wife alone. to fit a little shelf. But that is what you ladies never understand. However.

" said Sir James. Casaubon has a great soul. which was not without a scorching quality." shuffled quickly out of the room. looking very mildly towards Dorothea." said Mr. Why did you not tell me before? But the keys. Brooke. In fact. to make retractations. Mr." said Celia. I stick to the good old tunes. "What has happened to Miss Brooke? Pray speak out. Cadwallader drove up. Casaubon paid a morning visit. and they run away with all his brains. my notions of usefulness must be narrow. and more sensible than any one would imagine. Cadwallader's errand could not be despatched in the presence of grooms. Indeed. uncle."No. but a thorn in her spirit. Casaubon's aims in which she would await new duties.But at present this caution against a too hasty judgment interests me more in relation to Mr. I am aware. Brooke. prophecy is the most gratuitous.

 Or. and in the present stage of things I feel more tenderly towards his experience of success than towards the disappointment of the amiable Sir James. only five miles from Tipton; and Dorothea. Nothing greatly original had resulted from these measures; and the effects of the opium had convinced him that there was an entire dissimilarity between his constitution and De Quincey's. Casaubon's curate to be; doubtless an excellent man who would go to heaven (for Celia wished not to be unprincipled). she had an indirect mode of making her negative wisdom tell upon Dorothea."Many things are true which only the commonest minds observe. A light bookcase contained duodecimo volumes of polite literature in calf. and especially to consider them in the light of their fitness for the author of a "Key to all Mythologies."It is very kind of you to think of that. que trae sobre la cabeza una cosa que relumbra. and it is covered with books. I did not say that of myself. there is something in that. and I should be easily thrown. You know you would rather dine under the hedge than with Casaubon alone. there is something in that. and his mortification lost some of its bitterness by being mingled with compassion. Casaubon when he came again? But further reflection told her that she was presumptuous in demanding his attention to such a subject; he would not disapprove of her occupying herself with it in leisure moments. Bulstrode.""Well. As to the grander forms of music. but he did really wish to know something of his niece's mind. "I should have thought you would enter a little into the pleasures of hunting. under a new current of feeling. Casaubon had been the mere occasion which had set alight the fine inflammable material of her youthful illusions. at which the two setters were barking in an excited manner. and ready to run away. when I was his age.

 Such reasons would have been enough to account for plain dress. "You are as bad as Elinor. taking up Sir James Chettam's remark that he was studying Davy's Agricultural Chemistry.And how should Dorothea not marry?--a girl so handsome and with such prospects? Nothing could hinder it but her love of extremes. then. Somebody put a drop under a magnifying-glass and it was all semicolons and parentheses. whose nose and eyes were equally black and expressive. He would be the very Mawworm of bachelors who pretended not to expect it. Lady Chettam had not yet returned. The grounds here were more confined." said Mrs. as other women expected to occupy themselves with their dress and embroidery--would not forbid it when--Dorothea felt rather ashamed as she detected herself in these speculations. for I shall be constrained to make the utmost use of my time during our stay in Rome. "I thought it better to tell you. my dear. Oh what a happiness it would be to set the pattern about here! I think instead of Lazarus at the gate. Not that she now imagined Mr. I think."It is. and the startling apparition of youthfulness was forgotten by every one but Celia. and looked up gratefully to the speaker. looking up at Mr.--taking it in as eagerly as she might have taken in the scent of a fresh bouquet after a dry. not having felt her mode of answering him at all offensive. However." said Mr. you know--wants to raise the profession. my dear. Her mind was theoretic.

 at least to defer the marriage. and that sort of thing. as that of a blooming and disappointed rival." said Mrs." said Mr. Ladislaw. in relation to the latter.Dorothea sank into silence on the way back to the house. you not being of age. Here is a mine of truth. and had understood from him the scope of his great work. who attributed her own remarkable health to home-made bitters united with constant medical attendance. also of attractively labyrinthine extent. still walking quickly along the bridle road through the wood. Tucker was the middle-aged curate. who always took care of the young ladies in their walks. who drank her health unpretentiously.""Humphrey! I have no patience with you. B. a girl who would have been requiring you to see the stars by daylight. after putting down his hat and throwing himself into a chair.She bethought herself now of the condemned criminal.""Let her try a certain person's pamphlets. except. She was regarded as an heiress; for not only had the sisters seven hundred a-year each from their parents. for the south and east looked rather melancholy even under the brightest morning. "If he thinks of marrying me." said Celia. I suppose there is some relation between pictures and nature which I am too ignorant to feel--just as you see what a Greek sentence stands for which means nothing to me.

 being in the mood now to think her very winning and lovely--fit hereafter to be an eternal cherub. She was not in the least teaching Mr. unless it were on a public occasion. was in the old English style. raising his hat and showing his sleekly waving blond hair.Mr. he found himself talking with more and more pleasure to Dorothea. But now. Mr." she said." said Mr."Celia was trying not to smile with pleasure. the match is good. and I am very glad he is not.--taking it in as eagerly as she might have taken in the scent of a fresh bouquet after a dry. if you tried his metal. and did not at all dislike her new authority. was a little allayed by the knowledge that Mrs. The fact is. the fine arts. Dodo. made the solicitudes of feminine fashion appear an occupation for Bedlam. completing the furniture. which has made Englishmen what they re?" said Mr. for example. 2d Gent. Cadwallader the Rector's wife. Bless you." said Mr.

 I never thought of it as mere personal ease. seeing the gentlemen enter. Few scholars would have disliked teaching the alphabet under such circumstances. good as he was. But he had deliberately incurred the hindrance. All flightiness!""How very shocking! I fear she is headstrong.""Well.Later in the evening she followed her uncle into the library to give him the letter. the carpets and curtains with colors subdued by time. and yearned by its nature after some lofty conception of the world which might frankly include the parish of Tipton and her own rule of conduct there; she was enamoured of intensity and greatness. because you went on as you always do. The small boys wore excellent corduroy. Poor Dorothea! compared with her. Reach constantly at something that is near it." said Mr. and a wise man could help me to see which opinions had the best foundation. indeed."Many things are true which only the commonest minds observe. Casaubon. to use his expression. good as he was. as Celia remarked to herself; and in looking at her his face was often lit up by a smile like pale wintry sunshine. you know. "I must go straight to Sir James and break this to him.""Is that all?" said Sir James. Dorothea closed her pamphlet. she concluded that he must be in love with Celia: Sir James Chettam. In this way. as in consistency she ought to do.

 But in this order of experience I am still young. He discerned Dorothea. and would help me to live according to them. Yours with sincere devotion. but now. and blending her dim conceptions of both. get our thoughts entangled in metaphors. making one afraid of treading. And he has a very high opinion of you. also of attractively labyrinthine extent. Sir James would be cruelly annoyed: it will be too hard on him if you turn round now and make yourself a Whig sign-board. as brother in-law." said Mr. let us have them out. certainly." said Mr. The world would go round with me. She loved the fresh air and the various aspects of the country. much relieved to see through the window that Celia was coming in. even were he so far submissive to ordinary rule as to choose one. Won't you sit down. He ought not to allow the thing to be done in this headlong manner. Casaubon turned his eyes very markedly on Dorothea while she was speaking.Mr. Dodo. I fear. as if she needed more than her usual amount of preparation." said Lady Chettam when her son came near. Renfrew--that is what I think.

 the party being small and the room still. and finally stood with his back to the fire. with a slight blush (she sometimes seemed to blush as she breathed). And he has a very high opinion of you. This accomplished man condescended to think of a young girl. it had always been her way to find something wrong in her sister's words."Dorothea's brow took an expression of reprobation and pity. I should have thought Chettam was just the sort of man a woman would like. but he would probably have done this in any case. Cadwallader's mind was rapidly surveying the possibilities of choice for Dorothea. Tell me about this new young surgeon. If it were any one but me who said so. as in consistency she ought to do. dry. it was plain that the lodge-keeper regarded her as an important personage. I was at Cambridge when Wordsworth was there. Brooke's failure to elicit a companion's ideas. I thought you liked your own opinion--liked it. The Maltese puppy was not offered to Celia; an omission which Dorothea afterwards thought of with surprise; but she blamed herself for it. you know. miscellaneous opinions. Cadwallader's errand could not be despatched in the presence of grooms." Sir James said. it is even held sublime for our neighbor to expect the utmost there. Dorothea. and she looked up with eyes full of confidence to Mr. feminine. indignantly. not because she wished to change the wording.

 Or. maternal hands. He could not but wish that Dorothea should think him not less happy than the world would expect her successful suitor to be; and in relation to his authorship he leaned on her young trust and veneration. Of course. Some Radical fellow speechifying at Middlemarch said Casaubon was the learned straw-chopping incumbent.Mr." said Mr. shortening the weeks of courtship. the mayor's daughter is more to my taste than Miss Brooke or Miss Celia either. As it was. it would never come off. whom she constantly considered from Celia's point of view." said Dorothea. he likes little Celia better." rejoined Mrs. And they were not alike in their lot. there is Southey's `Peninsular War. was seated on a bench. "You give up from some high. will never wear them?""Nay. On leaving Rugby he declined to go to an English university. would not have chosen that his nieces should meet the daughter of a Middlemarch manufacturer. my dear. and looked like turkey-cocks; whereupon she was ready to play at cat's cradle with them whenever they recovered themselves. Peel's late conduct on the Catholic question.""I am feeling something which is perhaps foolish and wrong. To have in general but little feeling. who had a complexion something like an Easter egg. metaphorically speaking.

"It seemed as if an electric stream went through Dorothea. the curious old maps and bird's-eye views on the walls of the corridor.""Ah. instead of settling down with her usual diligent interest to some occupation. And you her father. the party being small and the room still. And Tantripp will be a sufficient companion. without showing any surprise. and so I should never correspond to your pattern of a lady. Casaubon than to his young cousin. Casaubon had been the mere occasion which had set alight the fine inflammable material of her youthful illusions."She took up her pencil without removing the jewels. not coldly. We know what a masquerade all development is.""Is that all?" said Sir James."I am sure--at least. He ought not to allow the thing to be done in this headlong manner. "Each position has its corresponding duties. and Dorothea ceased to find him disagreeable since he showed himself so entirely in earnest; for he had already entered with much practical ability into Lovegood's estimates. And now he wants to go abroad again. rows of note-books. and work at philanthropy. Won't you sit down. You clever young men must guard against indolence. you know."That would be a different affair. but he did really wish to know something of his niece's mind. Here is a mine of truth. But.

 You have two sorts of potatoes. I am not sure that the greatest man of his age. Well. and dictate any changes that she would like to have made there. look upon great Tostatus and Thomas Aquainas' works; and tell me whether those men took pains.""Yes. The attitudes of receptivity are various. You clever young men must guard against indolence. my dear. take this dog. But a man mopes. That is not my line of action. blooming from a walk in the garden.Mr.Mr. Brooke. and I don't believe he could ever have been much more than the shadow of a man. as Miss Brooke passed out of the dining-room." said Dorothea."Celia had unclasped the necklace and drawn it off. and did not at all dislike her new authority. seemed to enforce a moral entirely encouraging to Will's generous reliance on the intentions of the universe with regard to himself. or wherever else he wants to go?""Yes; I have agreed to furnish him with moderate supplies for a year or so; he asks no more. who could illuminate principle with the widest knowledge a man whose learning almost amounted to a proof of whatever he believed!Dorothea's inferences may seem large; but really life could never have gone on at any period but for this liberal allowance of conclusions. and Celia pardoned her. while Celia. I never saw her. I wish you joy of your brother-in-law. if Peel stays in.

 could make room for. Brooke wondered. she said in another tone--"Yet what miserable men find such things. Dorothea. and in looking forward to an unfavorable possibility I cannot but feel that resignation to solitude will be more difficult after the temporary illumination of hope. Why. it would never come off. But some say. Who could speak to him? Something might be done perhaps even now. and always looked forward to renouncing it. and disinclines us to those who are indifferent. or. and having views of his own which were to be more clearly ascertained on the publication of his book.""No. In short. else they would have been proud to minister to such a father; and in the second place they might have studied privately and taught themselves to understand what they read." said Mr. Most men thought her bewitching when she was on horseback. Brooke's failure to elicit a companion's ideas."Hard students are commonly troubled with gowts. that kind of thing--they should study those up to a certain point. slipping the ring and bracelet on her finely turned finger and wrist.1st Gent. Among all forms of mistake. in the present case of throwing herself.' `Pues ese es el yelmo de Mambrino. Dropsy! There is no swelling yet--it is inward. Brooke. She thinks so much about everything.

""Then I think the commonest minds must be rather useful. He said you wanted Mr. Brooke. and calling her down from her rhapsodic mood by reminding her that people were staring. but a few of the ornaments were really of remarkable beauty. when he lifted his hat. She thought of often having them by her. and even his bad grammar is sublime. Brooke. my dear."He had no sonnets to write. Sir James smiling above them like a prince issuing from his enchantment in a rose-bush. Dorothea accused herself of some meanness in this timidity: it was always odious to her to have any small fears or contrivances about her actions. as she looked before her. In short. For the first time it entered into Celia's mind that there might be something more between Mr. The building. as they notably are in you. from a certain shyness on such subjects which was mutual between the sisters." said Mr. the new doctor. A man always makes a fool of himself. he held.Sir James Chettam had returned from the short journey which had kept him absent for a couple of days. or perhaps was subauditum; that is. You laugh. Moreover. and avoided looking at anything documentary as far as possible. uncle?""What.

 But he was positively obtrusive at this moment. I never see the beauty of those pictures which you say are so much praised." Celia had become less afraid of "saying things" to Dorothea since this engagement: cleverness seemed to her more pitiable than ever. I was bound to tell him that.--as the smallest birch-tree is of a higher kind than the most soaring palm. a little depression of the eyebrow. from a journey to the county town. that he has asked my permission to make you an offer of marriage--of marriage. She remained in that attitude till it was time to dress for dinner. "It is like the tiny one you brought me; only."Celia was trying not to smile with pleasure." she went on." she said. Brooke. or as you will yourself choose it to be. or the inscription on the door of a museum which might open on the treasures of past ages; and this trust in his mental wealth was all the deeper and more effective on her inclination because it was now obvious that his visits were made for her sake. Cadwallader's maid that Sir James was to marry the eldest Miss Brooke. Your uncle will never tell him. you will find records such as might justly cause you either bitterness or shame. that there was nothing for her to do in Lowick; and in the next few minutes her mind had glanced over the possibility."I believe all the petting that is given them does not make them happy. He was not going to renounce his ride because of his friend's unpleasant news--only to ride the faster in some other direction than that of Tipton Grange. I think--lost herself--at any rate was disowned by her family."I do believe Brooke is going to expose himself after all. I am sure. to whom a mistress's elementary ignorance and difficulties have a touching fitness. does it follow that he was fairly represented in the minds of those less impassioned personages who have hitherto delivered their judgments concerning him? I protest against any absolute conclusion. if necessary. whose plodding application.

 "I have little leisure for such literature just now. he observed with pleasure that Miss Brooke showed an ardent submissive affection which promised to fulfil his most agreeable previsions of marriage. not coldly.""It is quite possible that I should think it wrong for me." The _fad_ of drawing plans! What was life worth--what great faith was possible when the whole effect of one's actions could be withered up into such parched rubbish as that? When she got out of the carriage.""No. and Mrs. If it were any one but me who said so. with a slight blush (she sometimes seemed to blush as she breathed). I want to send my young cook to learn of her. but feeling rather unpleasantly conscious that this attack of Mrs. without understanding. He will even speak well of the bishop."I should learn everything then.--or from one of our elder poets. visible from some parts of the garden. I shall tell everybody that you are going to put up for Middlemarch on the Whig side when old Pinkerton resigns. Casaubon was gone away." said Mr. Casaubon was looking absently before him; but the lady was quick-eyed. hope. who was just as old and musty-looking as she would have expected Mr. and see what he could do for them. indeed. Dorothea accused herself of some meanness in this timidity: it was always odious to her to have any small fears or contrivances about her actions." who are usually not wanting in sons.--I am very grateful to you for loving me. Rhamnus. and his dimpled hands were quite disagreeable.

 that. "Poor Dodo. And without his distinctly recognizing the impulse. though not exactly aristocratic. now.""That is what I told him. and judge soundly on the social duties of the Christian. What could she do." said Dorothea. while Dorothea encircled her with gentle arms and pressed her lips gravely on each cheek in turn. which she was very fond of.""She is too young to know what she likes. I never thought of it as mere personal ease. my dear. And I do not see that I should be bound by Dorothea's opinions now we are going into society. Such a lady gave a neighborliness to both rank and religion." said Dorothea.The rural opinion about the new young ladies. She proposed to build a couple of cottages. Casaubon. Casaubon's talk about his great book was full of new vistas; and this sense of revelation. dinners.She was open. conspicuous on a dark background of evergreens. I believe you have never thought of them since you locked them up in the cabinet here. else we should not see what we are to see. on my own estate. yet they had brought a vague instantaneous sense of aloofness on his part. no--see that your tenants don't sell their straw.

 nor even the honors and sweet joys of the blooming matron. A well-meaning man.""Now. and her insistence on regulating life according to notions which might cause a wary man to hesitate before he made her an offer. and kissing his unfashionable shoe-ties as if he were a Protestant Pope. to which he had at first been urged by a lover's complaisance." said Dorothea. Cadwallader feel that the Miss Brookes and their matrimonial prospects were alien to her? especially as it had been the habit of years for her to scold Mr. you are very good. by the side of Sir James.Mr.""That is what I told him. "this is a happiness greater than I had ever imagined to be in reserve for me. and not the ordinary long-used blotting-book which only tells of forgotten writing. ."Oh. Of course the forked lightning seemed to pass through him when he first approached her. feeling scourged. as she looked before her. I must speak to your Mrs. Casaubon was the most interesting man she had ever seen.""Then I think the commonest minds must be rather useful. of course. to appreciate the rectitude of his perseverance in a landlord's duty. and was filled With admiration." said Sir James. The oppression of Celia. a better portrait. and sat down opposite to him.

 with rather a startled air of effort. I knew Romilly. I want to send my young cook to learn of her. any upstart who has got neither blood nor position. others being built at Lowick. Brooke. a little depression of the eyebrow. Mrs. a middle-aged bachelor and coursing celebrity. and said in her easy staccato. Dorothea. It was not a parsonage."So much the better. There--take away your property.However."Many things are true which only the commonest minds observe. In short." continued that good-natured man. or rather like a lover. but said at once--"Pray do not make that mistake any longer. now. `Why not? Casaubon is a good fellow--and young--young enough. Casaubon mentioned that his young relative had started for the Continent."The casket was soon open before them. I knew there was a great deal of nonsense in her--a flighty sort of Methodistical stuff.--I am very grateful to you for loving me.""How can you let Tantripp talk such gossip to you. bad eyes. "Oh.

 Casaubon." said Sir James. which."Dorothea was not at all tired. But upon my honor. Casaubon had not been without foresight on this head. If I were to put on such a necklace as that. seating herself comfortably. now."I think she is. Dorothea closed her pamphlet. He would be the very Mawworm of bachelors who pretended not to expect it. about five years old." Mr. but Sir James had appealed to her. which in the unfriendly mediums of Tipton and Freshitt had issued in crying and red eyelids. "Casaubon. to feed her eye at these little fountains of pure color. I went a good deal into that. we find. you know. was not only unexceptionable in point of breeding. I trust."How very beautiful these gems are!" said Dorothea. "They must be very dreadful to live with. and just then the sun passing beyond a cloud sent a bright gleam over the table. He had quitted the party early." Mr." said Dorothea.

 with all her eagerness to know the truths of life. I think. not consciously seeing. I think. Dorothea. who had her reasons for persevering. and above all. Standish." Mr. these times! Come now--for the Rector's chicken-broth on a Sunday. Celia?" said Dorothea. They were. The fact is. Now there was something singular. had he had no other clothes to wear than the skin of a bear not yet killed. and he looked silly and never denied it--talked about the independent line. I am often unable to decide. can you really believe that?""Certainly. Casaubon drove off to his Rectory at Lowick."It is quite decided. Casaubon didn't know Romilly. no Dissent; and though the public disposition was rather towards laying by money than towards spirituality." said Celia. we should put the pigsty cottages outside the park-gate. Mr.""I see no harm at all in Tantripp's talking to me. Casaubon's bias had been different. was in the old English style. Here was something really to vex her about Dodo: it was all very well not to accept Sir James Chettam.

 who could assure her of his own agreement with that view when duly tempered with wise conformity. who had a complexion something like an Easter egg. not the less angry because details asleep in her memory were now awakened to confirm the unwelcome revelation.""No; one such in a family is enough. with an air of smiling indifference. then. while the curate had probably no pretty little children whom she could like. half caressing. Celia blushed. The right conclusion is there all the same. But I am not going to hand money out of my purse to have experiments tried on me.""Oh. "It is noble.Mr. Reach constantly at something that is near it. I should have been travelling out of my brief to have hindered it. let me introduce to you my cousin. and Freke was the brick-and-mortar incumbent. "it is better to spend money in finding out how men can make the most of the land which supports them all. and then. smiling and rubbing his eye-glasses. kept in abeyance for the time her usual eagerness for a binding theory which could bring her own life and doctrine into strict connection with that amazing past. I can look forward to no better happiness than that which would be one with yours. It would be a great mistake to suppose that Dorothea would have cared about any share in Mr.-He seems to me to understand his profession admirably. Fitchett." said Mr. This must be one of Nature's inconsistencies. if Celia had not been close to her looking so pretty and composed.

 but with an appeal to her understanding. who was not fond of Mr. Brooke.Mr. This accomplished man condescended to think of a young girl. and bring his heart to its final pause. should she have straightway contrived the preliminaries of another? Was there any ingenious plot. and herein we see its fitness to round and complete the existence of our own. I spent no end of time in making out these things--Helicon.""It is impossible that I should ever marry Sir James Chettam. He came much oftener than Mr. Celia. it is not the right word for the feeling I must have towards the man I would accept as a husband. "I think we deserve to be beaten out of our beautiful houses with a scourge of small cords--all of us who let tenants live in such sties as we see round us. with whom this explanation had been long meditated and prearranged. the vast field of mythical constructions became intelligible. as if he had been called upon to make a public statement; and the balanced sing-song neatness of his speech. Brooke." Celia had become less afraid of "saying things" to Dorothea since this engagement: cleverness seemed to her more pitiable than ever. that he said he should prefer not to know the sources of the Nile. Yours with sincere devotion. I can form an opinion of persons. my dear. and about whom Dorothea felt some venerating expectation. and was filled With admiration. whom do you mean to say that you are going to let her marry?" Mrs. all men needed the bridle of religion. The oppression of Celia. why?" said Sir James.