and criticizing feminine.

Secondly, some of the new clothes had already come home, and she was
now wearing the tea-gown she had long dreamt of but had never aspired
to possess. It was of a blue so dark as to be almost black, with a
flame colored bar across the breast, harmonizing with her hair and
eyes. Of her eyes she wasn't thinking; but her hair....

That, however, was another part of the day's fairy tale.

When the dresses had been bought and paid for madame presumed to
Steptoe that mademoiselle was under some rich gentleman's protection.
Taking words at their face value, as she, Letty, did herself, Steptoe
admitted that she was. Madam made it plain that she understood this
honor, which often came to girls of the humblest classes, and the need
there could be for supplementing wardrobes suddenly. After that it was
confidence for confidence. Madame had seen that in the matter of
lingerie mademoiselle "left to desire," and though Margot made no
specialty in this line, they happened to have on an upper floor a
consignment just arrived from Paris, and if monsieur would allow
mademoiselle to come up and inspect it.... Then it was Madame Simone's
coiffeur. At least it was the coiffeur whom Madame Simone recommended,
who came to the house, after Letty had donned a peignoir from the
consignment just arrived from Paris.... And now, at half past nine in
the evening, it was the memory of a day of mingled agony and
enchantment.

Having looked her over as he summoned her to dinner, Steptoe had
approved of her. He had approved of her with an inner emphasis
stronger than he expressed. Letty didn't know how she knew this; but
she knew. She knew that her transformation was a surprise to him. She
knew that though he had hoped much from her she was giving him more
than he had hoped. Nothing that he said told her this, but something
in his manner--in his yearning as he passed her the various dishes and
tactfully showed her how to help herself, in the tenderness with which
he repeated correctly her little slips in words--something in this
betrayed it.

She knew it, too, when after dinner he begged her not to escape to the
little back room, but to take her place in the drawing-room.

"Madam'll find that it'll pass the time for 'er. Maybe too Mr.
Rashleigh'll come in. 'E does sometimes--early like. I've known 'im to
come 'ome by 'alf past nine, and if 'is ma wasn't sittin' in the
drorin' room 'e'd be quite put out. Lydies mostly w