"
The astonishment of the father may be conceived, and his cavils;
L----'s also.
To cut the story short, it was settled in Emily's way, for she was one
of the sultana kind, dread and dangerous. L---- hardly wished her to
love him now, for he half hated her for all she had done; yet he was
glad to have her back, as she had judged, for the sake of appearances.
All was smoothed over by a plausible story. People, indeed, knew the
truth as to the fair one's outrageous conduct perfectly, but Mr. L----
was rich, his wife beautiful, and gave good parties; so society, as
such, bowed and smiled, while individuals scandalized the pair.
They had been living on this footing for several years, when I saw
Emily at the opera. She was a much altered being. Debarred of
happiness in her affections, she had turned for solace to the
intellectual life, and her naturally powerful and brilliant mind had
matured into a splendor which had never been dreamed of by those who
had seen her amid the freaks end day-dreams of her early youth.
Yet, as I said before, she was not captivating to me, as her picture
had been. She was, in a different way, as beautiful in feature and
coloring as in her spring-time.
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