One way with
another, no doubt I was a good deal improved to look at, and
acquired a bit of modest air that would have surprised the good
folks at Essendean.
The two younger misses were very willing to discuss a point of my
habiliment, because that was in the line of their chief thoughts.
I cannot say that they appeared any other way conscious of my
presence; and though always more than civil, with a kind of
heartless cordiality, could not hide how much I wearied them. As
for the aunt, she was a wonderful still woman; and I think she gave
me much the same attention as she gave the rest of the family,
which was little enough. The eldest daughter and the Advocate
himself were thus my principal friends, and our familiarity was
much increased by a pleasure that we took in common. Before the
court met we spent a day or two at the house of Grange, living very
nobly with an open table, and here it was that we three began to
ride out together in the fields, a practice afterwards maintained
in Edinburgh, so far as the Advocate's continual affairs permitted.
When we were put in a good frame by the briskness of the exercise,
the difficulties of the way, or the accidents of bad weather, my
shyness wore entirely off; we forgot that we were strangers, and
speech not being required, it flowed the more naturally on.
Pages:
271
272
273
274
275
276
277
278
279
280
281
282
283
284
285
286
287
288
289
290
291
292
293
294
295