im
know that she was no longer so unhappy as formerly.

This he posted on Friday. On the following Monday morning, the post
brought two letters for him, both addressed in female hand, one bearing
a city, the other a country, post-mark. Waymark smiled as he compared
the two envelopes, on one of which his name stood in firm, upright
characters, on the other in slender, sloping, delicate writing. The
former he pressed to his lips, then tore open eagerly; it was the
promised intimation that Ida would be at home after eight o'clock on
Wednesday and Friday evenings, nothing more. The second letter he
allowed to lie by till he had breakfasted. He could see that it
contained more than one sheet. When at length he opened it, he read
this:--

"DEAR MR. WAYMARK,--I have an hour of freedom this Sunday afternoon,
and I will spend it in replying as well as I can to your very
interesting letter. My life is, as you say, very quiet and commonplace
compared with that you find yourself suddenly entering upon. I have no
such strange and moving things to write about, but I will tell you in
the first place how I live and what I do, then put down some of the
thoughts your letter has excited in me.

"The family I am with consists of very worthy but commonplace people.
They treat me with more consideration than I imagine governesses
usually get, and I am grateful to them for this, but their
conversation, especially that of Mrs. Epping, I find rather wearisome.
It deals with very trivial concerns of everyday life, in which I vainly
endeavour to interest myself.

"Then there is the religious formalism of the Eppings and their
friends. They are High Church. They discuss with astonishing vigour and
at dreadful length what seems to me the most immaterial points in the
Church service, and just at present an impulse is given to their zeal
by the fact of their favourite clergyman being threatened with a
prosecution for ritualistic practices. Of course I have to feign a
becoming interest in all this, and to take part in all their religious
forms and ceremonies. And indeed it is all so new to me that I have
scarcely yet got over the first feelings of wonder and curiosity.

"Have I not, then, you will ask, the courage of my opinions? But indeed
my religious opinions are so strangely different from those which
prevail here, that I fear it would be impossible to make my thoughts
clear to these good people. They would scarcely esteem me a Christian;