serenely
or actively noble and happy without reference to them. She valued
persons chiefly according to their external conditions, and of course
the very moment her relative, the Lady of our breakfast-table, began
to find herself in a streak of sunshine she came forward with a lighted
candle to show her which way her path lay before her.

The Lady saw all this, how plainly, how painfully! yet she exercised a
true charity for the weakness of her relative. Sensible people have as
much consideration for the frailties of the rich as for those of
the poor. There is a good deal of excuse for them. Even you and I,
philosophers and philanthropists as we may think ourselves, have a
dislike for the enforced economies, proper and honorable though they
certainly are, of those who are two or three degrees below us in the
scale of agreeable living.

--These are very worthy persons you have been living with, my dear,
--said Mrs. Midas--[the "My dear" was an expression which had flowered
out more luxuriantly than ever before in the new streak of sunshine]
--eminently respectable parties, I have no question, but then we shall
want you to move as soon as possible to our quarter of the town, where
we can see more of you than we have been able to in this queer place.

It was not very pleasant to listen to this kind of talk, but the Lady
remembered her annual bouquet, and her occasional visits from the rich
lady, and restrained the inclination to remind her of the humble sphere
from which she herself, the rich and patronizing personage, had worked
her way up (if it was up) into that world which she seemed to think was
the only one where a human being could find life worth having. Her
cheek flushed a little, however, as she said to Mrs. Midas that she felt
attached to the place where she had been living so long. She doubted,
she was pleased to say, whether she should find better company in
any circle she was like to move in than she left behind her at our
boarding-house. I give the old Master the credit of this compliment. If
one does not agree with half of what he says, at any rate he always has
something to say, and entertains and lets out opinions and whims and
notions of one kind and another that one can quarrel with if he is
out of humor, or carry away to think about if he happens to be in the
receptive mood.

But the Lady expressed still more strongly the regret she should feel at
leaving her young friend, our Scheherezade. I canno