attention to essentials. Lady Conway could not have borne to bring up
her own girls as she herself and her sisters had grown up; she had
chosen a governess who made religion the first object, and she was
delighted to see them all so attached to her; she had never had any
fears of their being too serious--people had learnt to be reasonable
now, did not insist on the impracticable, did not denounce moderate
gaieties, as had once been done to the alarm of poor Louisa.

Sweetest Louisa's son! She could not speak too warmly of him, and she
declared herself highly gratified by Mr. Mansell's opinion of his
modesty, attention, and good sense. Mr. Mansell was an excellent
judge, he had such as opinion of Lord Ormersfield's public character.

And, at a safe interval, she mentioned the probability that Beauchastel
might be settled on Isabel, if she should marry so as to please Mr.
Mansell: he cared for connexion more than for wealth; if he had a
weakness, it was for rank.

Mrs. Ponsonby thought it fair that the Earl should be aware of these
facts. He smiled ironically.

He left his card with his sister-in-law, and, to have it over while
Louis was safe at Oxford, invited the party to spend a day at
Ormersfield, with Mrs. Frost to entertain them. He was far too
considerate of the feelings that he attributed to the Ponsonbys to ask
them to come; and as three out of the six in company were more or less
in a state of haughtiness and coolness, Lady Conway's graces failed
entirely; and poor innocent Virginia and Louisa protested that they had
never spent so dull a day, and that they could not believe their cousin
Fitzjocelyn could belong to such a tiresome place.

Isabel, who had undergone more dull days than they had, contrived to
get through it by torturing Adeline with utter silence of all tidings
from the East, and by a swarm of suitors, with the fantastic Viscount
foremost. She never was awake from her dream until Mr. Holdsworth came
to dinner, and was so straightforward and easy that he thawed every one.

Afterwards, he never failed to return an enthusiastic reply to the
question that all the neighbourhood were asking each other--namely,
whether they had seen Miss Conway.

No one was a more devoted admirer than the Lady of Eschalott, whose
webs had a bad chance when there was one glimpse of Miss Conway to be
obtained from the window, and the vision of whose heart was that Mrs.
Martha might some day let her stand in the