avering to
her sister. When a thought of the match had first arisen in Sir Hugh's
London house, Lady Clavering had been eager in praise of Lord Ongar, or
eager in praise rather of the position which the future Lady Ongar might
hold; but since the prize had been secured, since it had become plain
that Julia was to be the greater woman of the two, she had harped
sometimes on the other string. As a sister she had striven for a
sister's welfare, but as a woman she could not keep herself from
comparisons which might tend to show that after all, well as Julia was
doing, she was not doing better than her elder sister had done. Hermione
had married simply a baronet, and not the richest or the most amiable
among baronets; but she had married a man suitable in age and wealth,
with whom any girl might have been in love. She had not sold herself to
be the nurse, or not to be the nurse, as it might turn out, of a
worn-out debauche. She would have hinted nothing of this, perhaps have
thought nothing of this, had not Julia and Lord Ongar walked together
through the Clavering groves as though they were two young people. She
owed it as a duty to her sister to point out that Lord Ongar could not
be a romantic young person, and ought not to be encouraged to play that
part.

"I don't know that I have made anything of him," answered Julia. "I
suppose he's much like other men when they're going to be married."
Julia quite understood the ideas that were passing through her sister's
mind, and did not feel them to be unnatural.

"What I mean is, that he has come out so strong in the Romeo line, which
we hardly expected, you know. We shall have him under your bedroom
window with a guitar, like Don Giovanni."

"I hope not, because it's so cold. I don't think it likely, as he seems
fond of going to bed early."

"And it's the best thing for him," said Lady Clavering, becoming serious
and carefully benevolent. "It's quite a wonder what good hours and quiet
living have done for him in so short a time. I was observing him as he
walked yesterday, and he put his feet to the ground as firmly almost as
Hugh does."

"Did he indeed? I hope he won't have the habit of putting his hand down
firmly as Hugh does sometimes."

"As for that," said Lady Clavering, with a little tremor, "I don't think
there's much difference between them. They all say that when Lord Ongar
means a thing he does mean it."

"I think a man ought to have a way of his own."

"An