Aunt Honeyman!"

"The Circassian beauties don't sell under so many thousand purses,"
remarked Mr. Pendennis. "If there's a beauty in a well-regulated
Georgian family, they fatten her; they feed her with the best Racahout
des Arabes. They give her silk robes, and perfumed baths; have her
taught to play on the dulcimer and dance and sing; and when she is quite
perfect, send her down to Constantinople for the Sultan's inspection.
The rest of the family think never of grumbling, but eat coarse meat,
bathe in the river, wear old clothes, and praise Allah for their
sister's elevation. Bah! Do you suppose the Turkish system doesn't
obtain all over the world? My poor Clive, this article in the Mayfair
Market is beyond your worship's price. Some things in this world are
made for our betters, young man. Let Dives say grace for his dinner, and
the dogs and Lazarus be thankful for the crumbs. Here comes Warrington,
shaven and smart as if he was going out a-courting."

Thus it will be seen, that in his communication with certain friends who
approached nearer to his own time of life, Clive was much more eloquent
and rhapsodical than in the letter which he wrote to his father,
regarding his passion for Miss Ethel. He celebrated her with pencil
and pen. He was for ever drawing the outline of her head, the solemn
eyebrow, the nose (that wondrous little nose), descending from the
straight forehead, the short upper lip, and chin sweeping in a full
curve to the neck, etc. etc. A frequenter of his studio might see a
whole gallery of Ethels there represented: when Mrs. Mackenzie visited
that place, and remarked one face and figure repeated on a hundred
canvases and papers, grey, white, and brown, I believe she was told that
the original was a famous Roman model, from whom Clive had studied a
great deal during his residence in Italy; on which Mrs. Mack gave it as
her opinion that Clive was a sad wicked young fellow. The widow thought
rather the better of him for being a sad wicked young fellow; and as for
Miss Rosey, she, was of course of mamma's way of thinking. Rosey went
through the world constantly smiling at whatever occurred. She was
good-humoured through the dreariest long evenings at the most stupid
parties; sate good-humouredly for hours at Shoolbred's whilst mamma was
making purchases; heard good-humouredly those old old stories of her
mother's day after day; bore an hour's joking or an hour's scolding with
equal good-humour; and w