I can't have Violet left alone. If we
could but get her down off her high horse, and drive that impudent woman
out of her head!--if you can't, no one else can.'

'It is very unfortunate,' said Percy. 'There is so much generous feeling
and strong affection to prompt her resistance, that it is hard to oppose
her, especially as I do believe there is no worse than folly and levity
in this friend of hers. I wish these occasions would not arise. Left to
herself these people would soon disgust her but for her own sake we must
interfere, and that keeps up her partisanship.'

'What is to be done?' was Violet's disconsolate beginning, as soon as
she could see Arthur alone.

'Take it easy'--words which she had taught herself to regard as a
warning that she was doleful. 'Never mind; if Theodora is so pig-headed
as to rush into this scheme, it is no concern of yours. All you have to
do is to take care not to be worried.'

Violet had regained a cheerful voice. 'If you were going with her, it
would not signify.'

'It would signify pretty much to me to be bored with all that riff-raff.
One would think Theodora bewitched.'

'There is hardly any one of our acquaintance.'

'No, the lady has dropped pretty much in the scale.'

'I wish I knew what your father and mother would think of it.'

'They would hate it as much as we do, but they could not prevent it.
Nobody can stop Theodora when once she has the bit between her teeth. As
I told Percy, if he can't, 'tis past all power. I wonder if he thinks by
this time he has caught a Tartar?'

'Did he call you to speak about it?'

'Yes; to say I must by no means let her go without a respectable female
to look after her.'

'I don't know these ladies; but if Mrs. Finch would ask Mrs. Bryanstone,
she is so good-natured that I dare say she would go.'

'That would be the most tolerable way of doing it; but I would lay you
anything you please that nothing but unmitigated Finch will content
her.'

'And that is worse than no one.'

'I wish some stop could be put to it. It is worse than Percy knows. She
can't speak to a man without flirting, and we shall have her turning
some poor fellow's head, like Wingfield's. I don't think it is
respectable!'

'It is very strange, so good and religious as she is.'

'Where is the use of her religion if it does not bring down her pride or
cure her obstinacy? If it would, I should see some good in the rout she
makes about going to church and teaching