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chapter xvii a week passed, and no news arrived of mr.rochester: ten days, and still he did not come. mrs. fairfax said she should not besurprised if he were to go straight from the leas to london, and thence to thecontinent, and not show his face again at thornfield for a year to come; he had not unfrequently quitted it in a manner quiteas abrupt and unexpected. when i heard this, i was beginning to feela strange chill and failing at the heart. i was actually permitting myself toexperience a sickening sense of

disappointment; but rallying my wits, andrecollecting my principles, i at once called my sensations to order; and it was wonderful how i got over the temporaryblunder--how i cleared up the mistake of supposing mr. rochester's movements amatter in which i had any cause to take a vital interest. not that i humbled myself by a slavishnotion of inferiority: on the contrary, i just said-- "you have nothing to do with the master ofthornfield, further than to receive the salary he gives you for teaching hisprotegee, and to be grateful for such

respectful and kind treatment as, if you do your duty, you have a right to expect athis hands. be sure that is the only tie he seriouslyacknowledges between you and him; so don't make him the object of your fine feelings,your raptures, agonies, and so forth. he is not of your order: keep to yourcaste, and be too self-respecting to lavish the love of the whole heart, soul, andstrength, where such a gift is not wanted and would be despised." i went on with my day's businesstranquilly; but ever and anon vague suggestions kept wandering across my brainof reasons why i should quit thornfield;

and i kept involuntarily framing advertisements and pondering conjecturesabout new situations: these thoughts i did not think to check; they might germinateand bear fruit if they could. mr. rochester had been absent upwards of afortnight, when the post brought mrs. fairfax a letter."it is from the master," said she, as she looked at the direction. "now i suppose we shall know whether we areto expect his return or not." and while she broke the seal and perusedthe document, i went on taking my coffee (we were at breakfast): it was hot, and iattributed to that circumstance a fiery

glow which suddenly rose to my face. why my hand shook, and why i involuntarilyspilt half the contents of my cup into my saucer, i did not choose to consider. "well, i sometimes think we are too quiet;but we run a chance of being busy enough now: for a little while at least," saidmrs. fairfax, still holding the note before her spectacles. ere i permitted myself to request anexplanation, i tied the string of adele's pinafore, which happened to be loose:having helped her also to another bun and refilled her mug with milk, i said,nonchalantly--

"mr. rochester is not likely to returnsoon, i suppose?" "indeed he is--in three days, he says: thatwill be next thursday; and not alone either. i don't know how many of the fine people atthe leas are coming with him: he sends directions for all the best bedrooms to beprepared; and the library and drawing-rooms are to be cleaned out; i am to get more kitchen hands from the george inn, atmillcote, and from wherever else i can; and the ladies will bring their maids and thegentlemen their valets: so we shall have a full house of it."

and mrs. fairfax swallowed her breakfastand hastened away to commence operations. the three days were, as she had foretold,busy enough. i had thought all the rooms at thornfieldbeautifully clean and well arranged; but it appears i was mistaken. three women were got to help; and suchscrubbing, such brushing, such washing of paint and beating of carpets, such takingdown and putting up of pictures, such polishing of mirrors and lustres, such lighting of fires in bedrooms, such airingof sheets and feather-beds on hearths, i never beheld, either before or since.

adele ran quite wild in the midst of it:the preparations for company and the prospect of their arrival, seemed to throwher into ecstasies. she would have sophie to look over all her"toilettes," as she called frocks; to furbish up any that were "passees," andto air and arrange the new. for herself, she did nothing but caperabout in the front chambers, jump on and off the bedsteads, and lie on themattresses and piled-up bolsters and pillows before the enormous fires roaringin the chimneys. from school duties she was exonerated: mrs.fairfax had pressed me into her service, and i was all day in the storeroom, helping(or hindering) her and the cook; learning

to make custards and cheese-cakes and french pastry, to truss game and garnishdesert-dishes. the party were expected to arrive onthursday afternoon, in time for dinner at six. during the intervening period i had no timeto nurse chimeras; and i believe i was as active and gay as anybody--adele excepted. still, now and then, i received a dampingcheck to my cheerfulness; and was, in spite of myself, thrown back on the region ofdoubts and portents, and dark conjectures. this was when i chanced to see the third-storey staircase door (which of late had

always been kept locked) open slowly, andgive passage to the form of grace poole, in prim cap, white apron, and handkerchief; when i watched her glide along the gallery,her quiet tread muffled in a list slipper; when i saw her look into the bustling,topsy-turvy bedrooms,--just say a word, perhaps, to the charwoman about the proper way to polish a grate, or clean a marblemantelpiece, or take stains from papered walls, and then pass on. she would thus descend to the kitchen oncea day, eat her dinner, smoke a moderate pipe on the hearth, and go back, carryingher pot of porter with her, for her private

solace, in her own gloomy, upper haunt. only one hour in the twenty-four did shepass with her fellow-servants below; all the rest of her time was spent in some low-ceiled, oaken chamber of the second storey: there she sat and sewed--and probably laughed drearily to herself,--ascompanionless as a prisoner in his dungeon. the strangest thing of all was, that not asoul in the house, except me, noticed her habits, or seemed to marvel at them: no onediscussed her position or employment; no one pitied her solitude or isolation. i once, indeed, overheard part of adialogue between leah and one of the

charwomen, of which grace formed thesubject. leah had been saying something i had notcaught, and the charwoman remarked-- "she gets good wages, i guess?" "yes," said leah; "i wish i had as good;not that mine are to complain of,--there's no stinginess at thornfield; but they'renot one fifth of the sum mrs. poole receives. and she is laying by: she goes everyquarter to the bank at millcote. i should not wonder but she has savedenough to keep her independent if she liked to leave; but i suppose she's got used tothe place; and then she's not forty yet,

and strong and able for anything. it is too soon for her to give upbusiness." "she is a good hand, i daresay," said thecharwoman. "ah!--she understands what she has to do,--nobody better," rejoined leah significantly; "and it is not every onecould fill her shoes--not for all the money she gets." "that it is not!" was the reply."i wonder whether the master--" the charwoman was going on; but here leahturned and perceived me, and she instantly gave her companion a nudge.

"doesn't she know?"i heard the woman whisper. leah shook her head, and the conversationwas of course dropped. all i had gathered from it amounted tothis,--that there was a mystery at thornfield; and that from participation inthat mystery i was purposely excluded. thursday came: all work had been completedthe previous evening; carpets were laid down, bed-hangings festooned, radiant whitecounterpanes spread, toilet tables arranged, furniture rubbed, flowers piled in vases: both chambers and saloons lookedas fresh and bright as hands could make them.

the hall, too, was scoured; and the greatcarved clock, as well as the steps and banisters of the staircase, were polishedto the brightness of glass; in the dining- room, the sideboard flashed resplendent with plate; in the drawing-room andboudoir, vases of exotics bloomed on all sides. afternoon arrived: mrs. fairfax assumed herbest black satin gown, her gloves, and her gold watch; for it was her part to receivethe company,--to conduct the ladies to their rooms, &c. adele, too, would be dressed: though ithought she had little chance of being

introduced to the party that day at least. however, to please her, i allowed sophie toapparel her in one of her short, full muslin frocks. for myself, i had no need to make anychange; i should not be called upon to quit my sanctum of the schoolroom; for a sanctumit was now become to me,--"a very pleasant refuge in time of trouble." it had been a mild, serene spring day--oneof those days which, towards the end of march or the beginning of april, riseshining over the earth as heralds of summer.

it was drawing to an end now; but theevening was even warm, and i sat at work in the schoolroom with the window open."it gets late," said mrs. fairfax, entering in rustling state. "i am glad i ordered dinner an hour afterthe time mr. rochester mentioned; for it is past six now. i have sent john down to the gates to seeif there is anything on the road: one can see a long way from thence in the directionof millcote." she went to the window. "here he is!" said she."well, john" (leaning out), "any news?"

"they're coming, ma'am," was the answer."they'll be here in ten minutes." adele flew to the window. i followed, taking care to stand on oneside, so that, screened by the curtain, i could see without being seen. the ten minutes john had given seemed verylong, but at last wheels were heard; four equestrians galloped up the drive, andafter them came two open carriages. fluttering veils and waving plumes filledthe vehicles; two of the cavaliers were young, dashing-looking gentlemen; the thirdwas mr. rochester, on his black horse, mesrour, pilot bounding before him; at his

side rode a lady, and he and she were thefirst of the party. her purple riding-habit almost swept theground, her veil streamed long on the breeze; mingling with its transparentfolds, and gleaming through them, shone rich raven ringlets. "miss ingram!" exclaimed mrs. fairfax, andaway she hurried to her post below. the cavalcade, following the sweep of thedrive, quickly turned the angle of the house, and i lost sight of it. adele now petitioned to go down; but i tookher on my knee, and gave her to understand that she must not on any account think ofventuring in sight of the ladies, either

now or at any other time, unless expressly sent for: that mr. rochester would be veryangry, &c. "some natural tears she shed" on being toldthis; but as i began to look very grave, she consented at last to wipe them. a joyous stir was now audible in the hall:gentlemen's deep tones and ladies' silvery accents blent harmoniously together, anddistinguishable above all, though not loud, was the sonorous voice of the master of thornfield hall, welcoming his fair andgallant guests under its roof. then light steps ascended the stairs; andthere was a tripping through the gallery,

and soft cheerful laughs, and opening andclosing doors, and, for a time, a hush. "elles changent de toilettes," said adele;who, listening attentively, had followed every movement; and she sighed. "chez maman," said she, "quand il y avaitdu monde, je le suivais partout, au salon et a leurs chambres; souvent je regardaisles femmes de chambre coiffer et habiller les dames, et c'etait si amusant: commecela on apprend." "don't you feel hungry, adele?""mais oui, mademoiselle: voila cinq ou six heures que nous n'avons pas mange." "well now, while the ladies are in theirrooms, i will venture down and get you

something to eat." and issuing from my asylum with precaution,i sought a back-stairs which conducted directly to the kitchen. all in that region was fire and commotion;the soup and fish were in the last stage of projection, and the cook hung over hercrucibles in a frame of mind and body threatening spontaneous combustion. in the servants' hall two coachmen andthree gentlemen's gentlemen stood or sat round the fire; the abigails, i suppose,were upstairs with their mistresses; the new servants, that had been hired frommillcote, were bustling about everywhere.

threading this chaos, i at last reached thelarder; there i took possession of a cold chicken, a roll of bread, some tarts, aplate or two and a knife and fork: with this booty i made a hasty retreat. i had regained the gallery, and was justshutting the back-door behind me, when an accelerated hum warned me that the ladieswere about to issue from their chambers. i could not proceed to the schoolroomwithout passing some of their doors, and running the risk of being surprised with mycargo of victualage; so i stood still at this end, which, being windowless, was dark: quite dark now, for the sun was setand twilight gathering.

presently the chambers gave up their fairtenants one after another: each came out gaily and airily, with dress that gleamedlustrous through the dusk. for a moment they stood grouped together atthe other extremity of the gallery, conversing in a key of sweet subduedvivacity: they then descended the staircase almost as noiselessly as a bright mistrolls down a hill. their collective appearance had left on mean impression of high- born elegance, such as i had never before received. i found adele peeping through theschoolroom door, which she held ajar. "what beautiful ladies!" cried she inenglish.

"oh, i wish i might go to them! do you think mr. rochester will send for usby-and-bye, after dinner?" "no, indeed, i don't; mr. rochester hassomething else to think about. never mind the ladies to-night; perhaps youwill see them to-morrow: here is your dinner." she was really hungry, so the chicken andtarts served to divert her attention for a time. it was well i secured this forage, or bothshe, i, and sophie, to whom i conveyed a share of our repast, would have run achance of getting no dinner at all: every

one downstairs was too much engaged tothink of us. the dessert was not carried out till afternine and at ten footmen were still running to and fro with trays and coffee- cups. i allowed adele to sit up much later thanusual; for she declared she could not possibly go to sleep while the doors keptopening and shutting below, and people bustling about. besides, she added, a message mightpossibly come from mr. rochester when she was undressed; "et alors quel dommage!" i told her stories as long as she wouldlisten to them; and then for a change i

took her out into the gallery. the hall lamp was now lit, and it amusedher to look over the balustrade and watch the servants passing backwards andforwards. when the evening was far advanced, a soundof music issued from the drawing-room, whither the piano had been removed; adeleand i sat down on the top step of the stairs to listen. presently a voice blent with the rich tonesof the instrument; it was a lady who sang, and very sweet her notes were. the solo over, a duet followed, and then aglee: a joyous conversational murmur filled

up the intervals. i listened long: suddenly i discovered thatmy ear was wholly intent on analysing the mingled sounds, and trying to discriminateamidst the confusion of accents those of mr. rochester; and when it caught them, which it soon did, it found a further taskin framing the tones, rendered by distance inarticulate, into words.the clock struck eleven. i looked at adele, whose head leant againstmy shoulder; her eyes were waxing heavy, so i took her up in my arms and carried heroff to bed. it was near one before the gentlemen andladies sought their chambers.

the next day was as fine as itspredecessor: it was devoted by the party to an excursion to some site in theneighbourhood. they set out early in the forenoon, some onhorseback, the rest in carriages; i witnessed both the departure and thereturn. miss ingram, as before, was the only ladyequestrian; and, as before, mr. rochester galloped at her side; the two rode a littleapart from the rest. i pointed out this circumstance to mrs.fairfax, who was standing at the window with me-- "you said it was not likely they shouldthink of being married," said i, "but you

see mr. rochester evidently prefers her toany of the other ladies." "yes, i daresay: no doubt he admires her." "and she him," i added; "look how she leansher head towards him as if she were conversing confidentially; i wish i couldsee her face; i have never had a glimpse of it yet." "you will see her this evening," answeredmrs. fairfax. "i happened to remark to mr. rochester howmuch adele wished to be introduced to the ladies, and he said: 'oh! let her come intothe drawing-room after dinner; and request miss eyre to accompany her.'"

"yes; he said that from mere politeness: ineed not go, i am sure," i answered. "well, i observed to him that as you wereunused to company, i did not think you would like appearing before so gay a party--all strangers; and he replied, in his quick way--'nonsense! if she objects, tell her it is myparticular wish; and if she resists, say i shall come and fetch her in case ofcontumacy.'" "i will not give him that trouble," ianswered. "i will go, if no better may be; but idon't like it. shall you be there, mrs. fairfax?"

"no; i pleaded off, and he admitted myplea. i'll tell you how to manage so as to avoidthe embarrassment of making a formal entrance, which is the most disagreeablepart of the business. you must go into the drawing- room while itis empty, before the ladies leave the dinner-table; choose your seat in any quietnook you like; you need not stay long after the gentlemen come in, unless you please: just let mr. rochester see you are thereand then slip away--nobody will notice you.""will these people remain long, do you think?"

"perhaps two or three weeks, certainly notmore. after the easter recess, sir george lynn,who was lately elected member for millcote, will have to go up to town and take hisseat; i daresay mr. rochester will accompany him: it surprises me that he has already made so protracted a stay atthornfield." it was with some trepidation that iperceived the hour approach when i was to repair with my charge to the drawing-room. adele had been in a state of ecstasy allday, after hearing she was to be presented to the ladies in the evening; and it wasnot till sophie commenced the operation of

dressing her that she sobered down. then the importance of the process quicklysteadied her, and by the time she had her curls arranged in well-smoothed, droopingclusters, her pink satin frock put on, her long sash tied, and her lace mittensadjusted, she looked as grave as any judge. no need to warn her not to disarrange herattire: when she was dressed, she sat demurely down in her little chair, takingcare previously to lift up the satin skirt for fear she should crease it, and assured me she would not stir thence till i wasready. this i quickly was: my best dress (thesilver-grey one, purchased for miss

temple's wedding, and never worn since) wassoon put on; my hair was soon smoothed; my sole ornament, the pearl brooch, soonassumed. we descended. fortunately there was another entrance tothe drawing-room than that through the saloon where they were all seated atdinner. we found the apartment vacant; a large fireburning silently on the marble hearth, and wax candles shining in bright solitude,amid the exquisite flowers with which the tables were adorned. the crimson curtain hung before the arch:slight as was the separation this drapery

formed from the party in the adjoiningsaloon, they spoke in so low a key that nothing of their conversation could bedistinguished beyond a soothing murmur. adele, who appeared to be still under theinfluence of a most solemnising impression, sat down, without a word, on the footstooli pointed out to her. i retired to a window-seat, and taking abook from a table near, endeavoured to read.adele brought her stool to my feet; ere long she touched my knee. "what is it, adele?""est-ce que je ne puis pas prendrie une seule de ces fleurs magnifiques,mademoiselle?

seulement pour completer ma toilette." "you think too much of your 'toilette,'adele: but you may have a flower." and i took a rose from a vase and fastenedit in her sash. she sighed a sigh of ineffablesatisfaction, as if her cup of happiness were now full. i turned my face away to conceal a smile icould not suppress: there was something ludicrous as well as painful in the littleparisienne's earnest and innate devotion to matters of dress. a soft sound of rising now became audible;the curtain was swept back from the arch;

through it appeared the dining-room, withits lit lustre pouring down light on the silver and glass of a magnificent dessert- service covering a long table; a band ofladies stood in the opening; they entered, and the curtain fell behind them. there were but eight; yet, somehow, as theyflocked in, they gave the impression of a much larger number. some of them were very tall; many weredressed in white; and all had a sweeping amplitude of array that seemed to magnifytheir persons as a mist magnifies the moon. i rose and curtseyed to them: one or twobent their heads in return, the others only

stared at me. they dispersed about the room, remindingme, by the lightness and buoyancy of their movements, of a flock of white plumy birds. some of them threw themselves in half-reclining positions on the sofas and ottomans: some bent over the tables andexamined the flowers and books: the rest gathered in a group round the fire: all talked in a low but clear tone which seemedhabitual to them. i knew their names afterwards, and may aswell mention them now. first, there was mrs. eshton and two of herdaughters.

she had evidently been a handsome woman,and was well preserved still. of her daughters, the eldest, amy, wasrather little: naive, and child-like in face and manner, and piquant in form; herwhite muslin dress and blue sash became her well. the second, louisa, was taller and moreelegant in figure; with a very pretty face, of that order the french term minoischiffone: both sisters were fair as lilies. lady lynn was a large and stout personageof about forty, very erect, very haughty- looking, richly dressed in a satin robe ofchangeful sheen: her dark hair shone

glossily under the shade of an azure plume,and within the circlet of a band of gems. mrs. colonel dent was less showy; but, ithought, more lady-like. she had a slight figure, a pale, gentleface, and fair hair. her black satin dress, her scarf of richforeign lace, and her pearl ornaments, pleased me better than the rainbow radianceof the titled dame. but the three most distinguished--partly,perhaps, because the tallest figures of the band--were the dowager lady ingram and herdaughters, blanche and mary. they were all three of the loftiest statureof women. the dowager might be between forty andfifty: her shape was still fine; her hair

(by candle-light at least) still black; herteeth, too, were still apparently perfect. most people would have termed her asplendid woman of her age: and so she was, no doubt, physically speaking; but thenthere was an expression of almost insupportable haughtiness in her bearingand countenance. she had roman features and a double chin,disappearing into a throat like a pillar: these features appeared to me not onlyinflated and darkened, but even furrowed with pride; and the chin was sustained by the same principle, in a position of almostpreternatural erectness. she had, likewise, a fierce and a hard eye:it reminded me of mrs. reed's; she mouthed

her words in speaking; her voice was deep,its inflections very pompous, very dogmatical,--very intolerable, in short. a crimson velvet robe, and a shawl turbanof some gold-wrought indian fabric, invested her (i suppose she thought) with atruly imperial dignity. blanche and mary were of equal stature,--straight and tall as poplars. mary was too slim for her height, butblanche was moulded like a dian. i regarded her, of course, with specialinterest. first, i wished to see whether herappearance accorded with mrs. fairfax's description; secondly, whether it at allresembled the fancy miniature i had painted

of her; and thirdly--it will out!--whether it were such as i should fancy likely tosuit mr. rochester's taste. as far as person went, she answered pointfor point, both to my picture and mrs. fairfax's description. the noble bust, the sloping shoulders, thegraceful neck, the dark eyes and black ringlets were all there;--but her face? her face was like her mother's; a youthfulunfurrowed likeness: the same low brow, the same high features, the same pride. it was not, however, so saturnine a pride!she laughed continually; her laugh was

satirical, and so was the habitualexpression of her arched and haughty lip. genius is said to be self-conscious. i cannot tell whether miss ingram was agenius, but she was self-conscious-- remarkably self-conscious indeed.she entered into a discourse on botany with the gentle mrs. dent. it seemed mrs. dent had not studied thatscience: though, as she said, she liked flowers, "especially wild ones;" missingram had, and she ran over its vocabulary with an air. i presently perceived she was (what isvernacularly termed) trailing mrs. dent;

that is, playing on her ignorance--hertrail might be clever, but it was decidedly not good- natured. she played: her execution was brilliant;she sang: her voice was fine; she talked french apart to her mamma; and she talkedit well, with fluency and with a good accent. mary had a milder and more open countenancethan blanche; softer features too, and a skin some shades fairer (miss ingram wasdark as a spaniard)--but mary was deficient in life: her face lacked expression, her eye lustre; she had nothing to say, andhaving once taken her seat, remained fixed

like a statue in its niche.the sisters were both attired in spotless white. and did i now think miss ingram such achoice as mr. rochester would be likely to make?i could not tell--i did not know his taste in female beauty. if he liked the majestic, she was the verytype of majesty: then she was accomplished, sprightly. most gentlemen would admire her, i thought;and that he did admire her, i already seemed to have obtained proof: to removethe last shade of doubt, it remained but to

see them together. you are not to suppose, reader, that adelehas all this time been sitting motionless on the stool at my feet: no; when theladies entered, she rose, advanced to meet them, made a stately reverence, and saidwith gravity-- "bon jour, mesdames." and miss ingram had looked down at her witha mocking air, and exclaimed, "oh, what a little puppet!" lady lynn had remarked, "it is mr.rochester's ward, i suppose--the little french girl he was speaking of."mrs. dent had kindly taken her hand, and

given her a kiss. amy and louisa eshton had cried outsimultaneously--"what a love of a child!" and then they had called her to a sofa,where she now sat, ensconced between them, chattering alternately in french and brokenenglish; absorbing not only the young ladies' attention, but that of mrs. eshton and lady lynn, and getting spoilt to herheart's content. at last coffee is brought in, and thegentlemen are summoned. i sit in the shade--if any shade there bein this brilliantly-lit apartment; the window-curtain half hides me.again the arch yawns; they come.

the collective appearance of the gentlemen,like that of the ladies, is very imposing: they are all costumed in black; most ofthem are tall, some young. henry and frederick lynn are very dashingsparks indeed; and colonel dent is a fine soldierly man. mr. eshton, the magistrate of the district,is gentleman-like: his hair is quite white, his eyebrows and whiskers still dark, whichgives him something of the appearance of a "pere noble de theatre." lord ingram, like his sisters, is verytall; like them, also, he is handsome; but he shares mary's apathetic and listlesslook: he seems to have more length of limb

than vivacity of blood or vigour of brain. and where is mr. rochester?he comes in last: i am not looking at the arch, yet i see him enter. i try to concentrate my attention on thosenetting-needles, on the meshes of the purse i am forming--i wish to think only of thework i have in my hands, to see only the silver beads and silk threads that lie in my lap; whereas, i distinctly behold hisfigure, and i inevitably recall the moment when i last saw it; just after i hadrendered him, what he deemed, an essential service, and he, holding my hand, and

looking down on my face, surveyed me witheyes that revealed a heart full and eager to overflow; in whose emotions i had apart. how near had i approached him at thatmoment! what had occurred since, calculated tochange his and my relative positions? yet now, how distant, how far estranged wewere! so far estranged, that i did not expect himto come and speak to me. i did not wonder, when, without looking atme, he took a seat at the other side of the room, and began conversing with some of theladies. no sooner did i see that his attention wasriveted on them, and that i might gaze

without being observed, than my eyes weredrawn involuntarily to his face; i could not keep their lids under control: theywould rise, and the irids would fix on him. i looked, and had an acute pleasure inlooking,--a precious yet poignant pleasure; pure gold, with a steely point of agony: apleasure like what the thirst-perishing man might feel who knows the well to which he has crept is poisoned, yet stoops anddrinks divine draughts nevertheless. most true is it that "beauty is in the eyeof the gazer." my master's colourless, olive face, square,massive brow, broad and jetty eyebrows, deep eyes, strong features, firm, grimmouth,--all energy, decision, will,--were

not beautiful, according to rule; but they were more than beautiful to me; they werefull of an interest, an influence that quite mastered me,--that took my feelingsfrom my own power and fettered them in his. i had not intended to love him; the readerknows i had wrought hard to extirpate from my soul the germs of love there detected;and now, at the first renewed view of him, they spontaneously arrived, green andstrong! he made me love him without looking at me.i compared him with his guests. what was the gallant grace of the lynns,the languid elegance of lord ingram,--even the military distinction of colonel dent,contrasted with his look of native pith and

genuine power? i had no sympathy in their appearance,their expression: yet i could imagine that most observers would call them attractive,handsome, imposing; while they would pronounce mr. rochester at once harsh-featured and melancholy-looking. i saw them smile, laugh--it was nothing;the light of the candles had as much soul in it as their smile; the tinkle of thebell as much significance as their laugh. i saw mr. rochester smile:--his sternfeatures softened; his eye grew both brilliant and gentle, its ray bothsearching and sweet. he was talking, at the moment, to louisaand amy eshton.

i wondered to see them receive with calmthat look which seemed to me so penetrating: i expected their eyes to fall,their colour to rise under it; yet i was glad when i found they were in no sensemoved. "he is not to them what he is to me," ithought: "he is not of their kind. i believe he is of mine;--i am sure he is--i feel akin to him--i understand the language of his countenance and movements:though rank and wealth sever us widely, i have something in my brain and heart, in my blood and nerves, that assimilates mementally to him. did i say, a few days since, that i hadnothing to do with him but to receive my

salary at his hands? did i forbid myself to think of him in anyother light than as a paymaster? blasphemy against nature!every good, true, vigorous feeling i have gathers impulsively round him. i know i must conceal my sentiments: i mustsmother hope; i must remember that he cannot care much for me. for when i say that i am of his kind, i donot mean that i have his force to influence, and his spell to attract; i meanonly that i have certain tastes and feelings in common with him.

i must, then, repeat continually that weare for ever sundered:--and yet, while i breathe and think, i must love him."coffee is handed. the ladies, since the gentlemen entered,have become lively as larks; conversation waxes brisk and merry.colonel dent and mr. eshton argue on politics; their wives listen. the two proud dowagers, lady lynn and ladyingram, confabulate together. sir george--whom, by-the-bye, i haveforgotten to describe,--a very big, and very fresh-looking country gentleman,stands before their sofa, coffee- cup in hand, and occasionally puts in a word.

mr. frederick lynn has taken a seat besidemary ingram, and is showing her the engravings of a splendid volume: she looks,smiles now and then, but apparently says little. the tall and phlegmatic lord ingram leanswith folded arms on the chair-back of the little and lively amy eshton; she glancesup at him, and chatters like a wren: she likes him better than she does mr.rochester. henry lynn has taken possession of anottoman at the feet of louisa: adele shares it with him: he is trying to talk frenchwith her, and louisa laughs at his blunders.

with whom will blanche ingram pair?she is standing alone at the table, bending gracefully over an album. she seems waiting to be sought; but shewill not wait too long: she herself selects a mate. mr. rochester, having quitted the eshtons,stands on the hearth as solitary as she stands by the table: she confronts him,taking her station on the opposite side of the mantelpiece. "mr. rochester, i thought you were not fondof children?" "nor am i.""then, what induced you to take charge of

such a little doll as that?" (pointing to adele)."where did you pick her up?" "i did not pick her up; she was left on myhands." "you should have sent her to school." "i could not afford it: schools are sodear." "why, i suppose you have a governess forher: i saw a person with her just now--is she gone? oh, no! there she is still, behind thewindow- curtain. you pay her, of course; i should think itquite as expensive,--more so; for you have

them both to keep in addition." i feared--or should i say, hoped?--theallusion to me would make mr. rochester glance my way; and i involuntarily shrankfarther into the shade: but he never turned his eyes. "i have not considered the subject," saidhe indifferently, looking straight before him."no, you men never do consider economy and common sense. you should hear mama on the chapter ofgovernesses: mary and i have had, i should think, a dozen at least in our day; half ofthem detestable and the rest ridiculous,

and all incubi--were they not, mama?" "did you speak, my own?"the young lady thus claimed as the dowager's special property, reiterated herquestion with an explanation. "my dearest, don't mention governesses; theword makes me nervous. i have suffered a martyrdom from theirincompetency and caprice. i thank heaven i have now done with them!" mrs. dent here bent over to the pious ladyand whispered something in her ear; i suppose, from the answer elicited, it was areminder that one of the anathematised race was present.

"tant pis!" said her ladyship, "i hope itmay do her good!" then, in a lower tone, but still loudenough for me to hear, "i noticed her; i am a judge of physiognomy, and in hers i seeall the faults of her class." "what are they, madam?" inquired mr.rochester aloud. "i will tell you in your private ear,"replied she, wagging her turban three times with portentous significancy. "but my curiosity will be past itsappetite; it craves food now." "ask blanche; she is nearer you than i.""oh, don't refer him to me, mama! i have just one word to say of the wholetribe; they are a nuisance.

not that i ever suffered much from them; itook care to turn the tables. what tricks theodore and i used to play onour miss wilsons, and mrs. greys, and madame jouberts!mary was always too sleepy to join in a plot with spirit. the best fun was with madame joubert: misswilson was a poor sickly thing, lachrymose and low- spirited, not worth the trouble ofvanquishing, in short; and mrs. grey was coarse and insensible; no blow took effecton her. but poor madame joubert! i see her yet in her raging passions, whenwe had driven her to extremities--spilt our

tea, crumbled our bread and butter, tossedour books up to the ceiling, and played a charivari with the ruler and desk, thefender and fire-irons. theodore, do you remember those merrydays?" "yaas, to be sure i do," drawled lordingram; "and the poor old stick used to cry out 'oh you villains childs!'--and then wesermonised her on the presumption of attempting to teach such clever blades aswe were, when she was herself so ignorant." "we did; and, tedo, you know, i helped youin prosecuting (or persecuting) your tutor, whey-faced mr. vining--the parson in thepip, as we used to call him. he and miss wilson took the liberty offalling in love with each other--at least

tedo and i thought so; we surprised sundrytender glances and sighs which we interpreted as tokens of 'la belle passion,' and i promise you the public soonhad the benefit of our discovery; we employed it as a sort of lever to hoist ourdead-weights from the house. dear mama, there, as soon as she got aninkling of the business, found out that it was of an immoral tendency.did you not, my lady-mother?" "certainly, my best. and i was quite right: depend on that:there are a thousand reasons why liaisons between governesses and tutors should neverbe tolerated a moment in any well-regulated

house; firstly--" "oh, gracious, mama!spare us the enumeration! au reste, we all know them: danger of badexample to innocence of childhood; distractions and consequent neglect of dutyon the part of the attached--mutual alliance and reliance; confidence thence resulting--insolence accompanying--mutinyand general blow-up. am i right, baroness ingram, of ingrampark?" "my lily-flower, you are right now, asalways." "then no more need be said: change thesubject."

amy eshton, not hearing or not heeding thisdictum, joined in with her soft, infantine tone: "louisa and i used to quiz ourgoverness too; but she was such a good creature, she would bear anything: nothingput her out. she was never cross with us; was she,louisa?" "no, never: we might do what we pleased;ransack her desk and her workbox, and turn her drawers inside out; and she was sogood-natured, she would give us anything we asked for." "i suppose, now," said miss ingram, curlingher lip sarcastically, "we shall have an abstract of the memoirs of all thegovernesses extant: in order to avert such

a visitation, i again move the introductionof a new topic. mr. rochester, do you second my motion?""madam, i support you on this point, as on every other." "then on me be the onus of bringing itforward. signior eduardo, are you in voice to-night?" "donna bianca, if you command it, i willbe." "then, signior, i lay on you my sovereignbehest to furbish up your lungs and other vocal organs, as they will be wanted on myroyal service." "who would not be the rizzio of so divine amary?"

"a fig for rizzio!" cried she, tossing herhead with all its curls, as she moved to the piano. "it is my opinion the fiddler david musthave been an insipid sort of fellow; i like black bothwell better: to my mind a man isnothing without a spice of the devil in him; and history may say what it will of james hepburn, but i have a notion, he wasjust the sort of wild, fierce, bandit hero whom i could have consented to gift with myhand." "gentlemen, you hear! now which of you most resembles bothwell?"cried mr. rochester.

"i should say the preference lies withyou," responded colonel dent. "on my honour, i am much obliged to you,"was the reply. miss ingram, who had now seated herselfwith proud grace at the piano, spreading out her snowy robes in queenly amplitude,commenced a brilliant prelude; talking meantime. she appeared to be on her high horse to-night; both her words and her air seemed intended to excite not only the admiration,but the amazement of her auditors: she was evidently bent on striking them assomething very dashing and daring indeed. "oh, i am so sick of the young men of thepresent day!" exclaimed she, rattling away

at the instrument. "poor, puny things, not fit to stir a stepbeyond papa's park gates: nor to go even so far without mama's permission andguardianship! creatures so absorbed in care about theirpretty faces, and their white hands, and their small feet; as if a man had anythingto do with beauty! as if loveliness were not the specialprerogative of woman--her legitimate appanage and heritage! i grant an ugly woman is a blot on thefair face of creation; but as to the gentlemen, let them be solicitous topossess only strength and valour: let their

motto be:--hunt, shoot, and fight: the restis not worth a fillip. such should be my device, were i a man." "whenever i marry," she continued after apause which none interrupted, "i am resolved my husband shall not be a rival,but a foil to me. i will suffer no competitor near thethrone; i shall exact an undivided homage: his devotions shall not be shared betweenme and the shape he sees in his mirror. mr. rochester, now sing, and i will playfor you." "i am all obedience," was the response."here then is a corsair-song. know that i doat on corsairs; and for thatreason, sing it con spirito."

"commands from miss ingram's lips would putspirit into a mug of milk and water." "take care, then: if you don't please me, iwill shame you by showing how such things should be done.""that is offering a premium on incapacity: i shall now endeavour to fail." "gardez-vous en bien!if you err wilfully, i shall devise a proportionate punishment." "miss ingram ought to be clement, for shehas it in her power to inflict a chastisement beyond mortal endurance.""ha! explain!" commanded the lady. "pardon me, madam: no need of explanation;your own fine sense must inform you that

one of your frowns would be a sufficientsubstitute for capital punishment." "sing!" said she, and again touching thepiano, she commenced an accompaniment in spirited style. "now is my time to slip away," thought i:but the tones that then severed the air arrested me. mrs. fairfax had said mr. rochesterpossessed a fine voice: he did--a mellow, powerful bass, into which he threw his ownfeeling, his own force; finding a way through the ear to the heart, and therewaking sensation strangely. i waited till the last deep and fullvibration had expired--till the tide of

talk, checked an instant, had resumed itsflow; i then quitted my sheltered corner and made my exit by the side-door, whichwas fortunately near. thence a narrow passage led into the hall:in crossing it, i perceived my sandal was loose; i stopped to tie it, kneeling downfor that purpose on the mat at the foot of the staircase. i heard the dining-room door unclose; agentleman came out; rising hastily, i stood face to face with him: it was mr.rochester. "how do you do?" he asked. "i am very well, sir.""why did you not come and speak to me in

the room?" i thought i might have retorted thequestion on him who put it: but i would not take that freedom.i answered-- "i did not wish to disturb you, as youseemed engaged, sir." "what have you been doing during myabsence?" "nothing particular; teaching adele asusual." "and getting a good deal paler than youwere--as i saw at first sight. what is the matter?" "nothing at all, sir.""did you take any cold that night you half

drowned me?""not the least." "return to the drawing-room: you aredeserting too early." "i am tired, sir."he looked at me for a minute. "and a little depressed," he said. "what about?tell me." "nothing--nothing, sir.i am not depressed." "but i affirm that you are: so muchdepressed that a few more words would bring tears to your eyes--indeed, they are therenow, shining and swimming; and a bead has slipped from the lash and fallen on to theflag.

if i had time, and was not in mortal dreadof some prating prig of a servant passing, i would know what all this means. well, to-night i excuse you; but understandthat so long as my visitors stay, i expect you to appear in the drawing-room everyevening; it is my wish; don't neglect it. now go, and send sophie for adele. good-night, my--" he stopped, bit his lip,and abruptly left me. > chapter xviii merry days were these at thornfield hall;and busy days too: how different from the

first three months of stillness, monotony,and solitude i had passed beneath its roof! all sad feelings seemed now driven from thehouse, all gloomy associations forgotten: there was life everywhere, movement all daylong. you could not now traverse the gallery,once so hushed, nor enter the front chambers, once so tenantless, withoutencountering a smart lady's-maid or a dandy valet. the kitchen, the butler's pantry, theservants' hall, the entrance hall, were equally alive; and the saloons were onlyleft void and still when the blue sky and halcyon sunshine of the genial spring

weather called their occupants out into thegrounds. even when that weather was broken, andcontinuous rain set in for some days, no damp seemed cast over enjoyment: indooramusements only became more lively and varied, in consequence of the stop put tooutdoor gaiety. i wondered what they were going to do thefirst evening a change of entertainment was proposed: they spoke of "playing charades,"but in my ignorance i did not understand the term. the servants were called in, the dining-room tables wheeled away, the lights otherwise disposed, the chairs placed in asemicircle opposite the arch.

while mr. rochester and the other gentlemendirected these alterations, the ladies were running up and down stairs ringing fortheir maids. mrs. fairfax was summoned to giveinformation respecting the resources of the house in shawls, dresses, draperies of anykind; and certain wardrobes of the third storey were ransacked, and their contents, in the shape of brocaded and hoopedpetticoats, satin sacques, black modes, lace lappets, &c., were brought down inarmfuls by the abigails; then a selection was made, and such things as were chosen were carried to the boudoir within thedrawing-room.

meantime, mr. rochester had again summonedthe ladies round him, and was selecting certain of their number to be of his party. "miss ingram is mine, of course," said he:afterwards he named the two misses eshton, and mrs. dent. he looked at me: i happened to be near him,as i had been fastening the clasp of mrs. dent's bracelet, which had got loose."will you play?" he asked. i shook my head. he did not insist, which i rather feared hewould have done; he allowed me to return quietly to my usual seat.

he and his aids now withdrew behind thecurtain: the other party, which was headed by colonel dent, sat down on the crescentof chairs. one of the gentlemen, mr. eshton, observingme, seemed to propose that i should be asked to join them; but lady ingraminstantly negatived the notion. "no," i heard her say: "she looks toostupid for any game of the sort." ere long a bell tinkled, and the curtaindrew up. within the arch, the bulky figure of sirgeorge lynn, whom mr. rochester had likewise chosen, was seen enveloped in awhite sheet: before him, on a table, lay open a large book; and at his side stood

amy eshton, draped in mr. rochester'scloak, and holding a book in her hand. somebody, unseen, rang the bell merrily;then adele (who had insisted on being one of her guardian's party), bounded forward,scattering round her the contents of a basket of flowers she carried on her arm. then appeared the magnificent figure ofmiss ingram, clad in white, a long veil on her head, and a wreath of roses round herbrow; by her side walked mr. rochester, and together they drew near the table. they knelt; while mrs. dent and louisaeshton, dressed also in white, took up their stations behind them.

a ceremony followed, in dumb show, in whichit was easy to recognise the pantomime of a marriage. at its termination, colonel dent and hisparty consulted in whispers for two minutes, then the colonel called out--"bride!" mr. rochester bowed, and the curtain fell. a considerable interval elapsed before itagain rose. its second rising displayed a moreelaborately prepared scene than the last. the drawing- room, as i have beforeobserved, was raised two steps above the dining- room, and on the top of the upperstep, placed a yard or two back within the

room, appeared a large marble basin--which i recognised as an ornament of theconservatory--where it usually stood, surrounded by exotics, and tenanted by goldfish--and whence it must have been transported with some trouble, on accountof its size and weight. seated on the carpet, by the side of thisbasin, was seen mr. rochester, costumed in shawls, with a turban on his head. his dark eyes and swarthy skin and paynimfeatures suited the costume exactly: he looked the very model of an eastern emir,an agent or a victim of the bowstring. presently advanced into view miss ingram.

she, too, was attired in oriental fashion:a crimson scarf tied sash-like round the waist: an embroidered handkerchief knottedabout her temples; her beautifully-moulded arms bare, one of them upraised in the act of supporting a pitcher, poised gracefullyon her head. both her cast of form and feature, hercomplexion and her general air, suggested the idea of some israelitish princess ofthe patriarchal days; and such was doubtless the character she intended torepresent. she approached the basin, and bent over itas if to fill her pitcher; she again lifted it to her head.

the personage on the well-brink now seemedto accost her; to make some request:--"she hasted, let down her pitcher on her hand,and gave him to drink." from the bosom of his robe he then produceda casket, opened it and showed magnificent bracelets and earrings; she actedastonishment and admiration; kneeling, he laid the treasure at her feet; incredulity and delight were expressed by her looks andgestures; the stranger fastened the bracelets on her arms and the rings in herears. it was eliezer and rebecca: the camels onlywere wanting. the divining party again laid their headstogether: apparently they could not agree

about the word or syllable the sceneillustrated. colonel dent, their spokesman, demanded"the tableau of the whole;" whereupon the curtain again descended. on its third rising only a portion of thedrawing-room was disclosed; the rest being concealed by a screen, hung with some sortof dark and coarse drapery. the marble basin was removed; in its place,stood a deal table and a kitchen chair: these objects were visible by a very dimlight proceeding from a horn lantern, the wax candles being all extinguished. amidst this sordid scene, sat a man withhis clenched hands resting on his knees,

and his eyes bent on the ground. i knew mr. rochester; though the begrimedface, the disordered dress (his coat hanging loose from one arm, as if it hadbeen almost torn from his back in a scuffle), the desperate and scowling countenance, the rough, bristling hairmight well have disguised him. as he moved, a chain clanked; to his wristswere attached fetters. "bridewell!" exclaimed colonel dent, andthe charade was solved. a sufficient interval having elapsed forthe performers to resume their ordinary costume, they re-entered the dining-room.

mr. rochester led in miss ingram; she wascomplimenting him on his acting. "do you know," said she, "that, of thethree characters, i liked you in the last best? oh, had you but lived a few years earlier,what a gallant gentleman-highwayman you would have made!""is all the soot washed from my face?" he asked, turning it towards her. "alas! yes: the more's the pity!nothing could be more becoming to your complexion than that ruffian's rouge.""you would like a hero of the road then?" "an english hero of the road would be thenext best thing to an italian bandit; and

that could only be surpassed by a levantinepirate." "well, whatever i am, remember you are mywife; we were married an hour since, in the presence of all these witnesses."she giggled, and her colour rose. "now, dent," continued mr. rochester, "itis your turn." and as the other party withdrew, he and hisband took the vacated seats. miss ingram placed herself at her leader'sright hand; the other diviners filled the chairs on each side of him and her. i did not now watch the actors; i no longerwaited with interest for the curtain to rise; my attention was absorbed by thespectators; my eyes, erewhile fixed on the

arch, were now irresistibly attracted tothe semicircle of chairs. what charade colonel dent and his partyplayed, what word they chose, how they acquitted themselves, i no longer remember;but i still see the consultation which followed each scene: i see mr. rochester turn to miss ingram, and miss ingram tohim; i see her incline her head towards him, till the jetty curls almost touch hisshoulder and wave against his cheek; i hear their mutual whisperings; i recall their interchanged glances; and something even ofthe feeling roused by the spectacle returns in memory at this moment.

i have told you, reader, that i had learntto love mr. rochester: i could not unlove him now, merely because i found that he hadceased to notice me--because i might pass hours in his presence, and he would never once turn his eyes in my direction--becausei saw all his attentions appropriated by a great lady, who scorned to touch me withthe hem of her robes as she passed; who, if ever her dark and imperious eye fell on me by chance, would withdraw it instantly asfrom an object too mean to merit observation. i could not unlove him, because i felt surehe would soon marry this very lady--because

i read daily in her a proud security in hisintentions respecting her--because i witnessed hourly in him a style of courtship which, if careless and choosingrather to be sought than to seek, was yet, in its very carelessness, captivating, andin its very pride, irresistible. there was nothing to cool or banish love inthese circumstances, though much to create despair. much too, you will think, reader, toengender jealousy: if a woman, in my position, could presume to be jealous of awoman in miss ingram's. but i was not jealous: or very rarely;--thenature of the pain i suffered could not be

explained by that word.miss ingram was a mark beneath jealousy: she was too inferior to excite the feeling. pardon the seeming paradox; i mean what isay. she was very showy, but she was notgenuine: she had a fine person, many brilliant attainments; but her mind waspoor, her heart barren by nature: nothing bloomed spontaneously on that soil; no unforced natural fruit delighted by itsfreshness. she was not good; she was not original: sheused to repeat sounding phrases from books: she never offered, nor had, an opinion ofher own.

she advocated a high tone of sentiment; butshe did not know the sensations of sympathy and pity; tenderness and truth were not inher. too often she betrayed this, by the unduevent she gave to a spiteful antipathy she had conceived against little adele: pushingher away with some contumelious epithet if she happened to approach her; sometimes ordering her from the room, and alwaystreating her with coldness and acrimony. other eyes besides mine watched thesemanifestations of character--watched them closely, keenly, shrewdly. yes; the future bridegroom, mr. rochesterhimself, exercised over his intended a

ceaseless surveillance; and it was fromthis sagacity--this guardedness of his-- this perfect, clear consciousness of his fair one's defects--this obvious absence ofpassion in his sentiments towards her, that my ever- torturing pain arose. i saw he was going to marry her, forfamily, perhaps political reasons, because her rank and connections suited him; i felthe had not given her his love, and that her qualifications were ill adapted to win fromhim that treasure. this was the point--this was where thenerve was touched and teased--this was where the fever was sustained and fed: shecould not charm him.

if she had managed the victory at once, andhe had yielded and sincerely laid his heart at her feet, i should have covered my face,turned to the wall, and (figuratively) have died to them. if miss ingram had been a good and noblewoman, endowed with force, fervour, kindness, sense, i should have had onevital struggle with two tigers--jealousy and despair: then, my heart torn out and devoured, i should have admired her--acknowledged her excellence, and been quiet for the rest of my days: and the moreabsolute her superiority, the deeper would have been my admiration--the more trulytranquil my quiescence.

but as matters really stood, to watch missingram's efforts at fascinating mr. rochester, to witness their repeatedfailure--herself unconscious that they did fail; vainly fancying that each shaft launched hit the mark, and infatuatedlypluming herself on success, when her pride and self-complacency repelled further andfurther what she wished to allure--to witness this, was to be at once under ceaseless excitation and ruthlessrestraint. because, when she failed, i saw how shemight have succeeded. arrows that continually glanced off frommr. rochester's breast and fell harmless at

his feet, might, i knew, if shot by a surerhand, have quivered keen in his proud heart--have called love into his stern eye, and softness into his sardonic face; or,better still, without weapons a silent conquest might have been won."why can she not influence him more, when she is privileged to draw so near to him?" i asked myself."surely she cannot truly like him, or not like him with true affection! if she did, she need not coin her smiles solavishly, flash her glances so unremittingly, manufacture airs soelaborate, graces so multitudinous.

it seems to me that she might, by merelysitting quietly at his side, saying little and looking less, get nigher his heart. i have seen in his face a far differentexpression from that which hardens it now while she is so vivaciously accosting him;but then it came of itself: it was not elicited by meretricious arts and calculated manoeuvres; and one had but toaccept it--to answer what he asked without pretension, to address him when needfulwithout grimace--and it increased and grew kinder and more genial, and warmed one likea fostering sunbeam. how will she manage to please him when theyare married?

i do not think she will manage it; and yetit might be managed; and his wife might, i verily believe, be the very happiest womanthe sun shines on." i have not yet said anything condemnatoryof mr. rochester's project of marrying for interest and connections. it surprised me when i first discoveredthat such was his intention: i had thought him a man unlikely to be influenced bymotives so commonplace in his choice of a wife; but the longer i considered the position, education, &c., of the parties,the less i felt justified in judging and blaming either him or miss ingram foracting in conformity to ideas and

principles instilled into them, doubtless,from their childhood. all their class held these principles: isupposed, then, they had reasons for holding them such as i could not fathom. it seemed to me that, were i a gentlemanlike him, i would take to my bosom only such a wife as i could love; but the veryobviousness of the advantages to the husband's own happiness offered by this plan convinced me that there must bearguments against its general adoption of which i was quite ignorant: otherwise ifelt sure all the world would act as i wished to act.

but in other points, as well as this, i wasgrowing very lenient to my master: i was forgetting all his faults, for which i hadonce kept a sharp look-out. it had formerly been my endeavour to studyall sides of his character: to take the bad with the good; and from the just weighingof both, to form an equitable judgment. now i saw no bad. the sarcasm that had repelled, theharshness that had startled me once, were only like keen condiments in a choice dish:their presence was pungent, but their absence would be felt as comparativelyinsipid. and as for the vague something--was it asinister or a sorrowful, a designing or a

desponding expression?--that opened upon acareful observer, now and then, in his eye, and closed again before one could fathom the strange depth partially disclosed; thatsomething which used to make me fear and shrink, as if i had been wandering amongstvolcanic-looking hills, and had suddenly felt the ground quiver and seen it gape: that something, i, at intervals, beheldstill; and with throbbing heart, but not with palsied nerves. instead of wishing to shun, i longed onlyto dare--to divine it; and i thought miss ingram happy, because one day she mightlook into the abyss at her leisure, explore

its secrets and analyse their nature. meantime, while i thought only of my masterand his future bride--saw only them, heard only their discourse, and considered onlytheir movements of importance--the rest of the party were occupied with their ownseparate interests and pleasures. the ladies lynn and ingram continued toconsort in solemn conferences, where they nodded their two turbans at each other, andheld up their four hands in confronting gestures of surprise, or mystery, or horror, according to the theme on whichtheir gossip ran, like a pair of magnified puppets.

mild mrs. dent talked with good-naturedmrs. eshton; and the two sometimes bestowed a courteous word or smile on me. sir george lynn, colonel dent, and mr.eshton discussed politics, or county affairs, or justice business. lord ingram flirted with amy eshton; louisaplayed and sang to and with one of the messrs.lynn; and mary ingram listened languidly to the gallant speeches of the other. sometimes all, as with one consent,suspended their by-play to observe and listen to the principal actors: for, afterall, mr. rochester and--because closely

connected with him--miss ingram were thelife and soul of the party. if he was absent from the room an hour, aperceptible dulness seemed to steal over the spirits of his guests; and his re-entrance was sure to give a fresh impulse to the vivacity of conversation. the want of his animating influenceappeared to be peculiarly felt one day that he had been summoned to millcote onbusiness, and was not likely to return till late. the afternoon was wet: a walk the party hadproposed to take to see a gipsy camp, lately pitched on a common beyond hay, wasconsequently deferred.

some of the gentlemen were gone to thestables: the younger ones, together with the younger ladies, were playing billiardsin the billiard-room. the dowagers ingram and lynn sought solacein a quiet game at cards. blanche ingram, after having repelled, bysupercilious taciturnity, some efforts of mrs. dent and mrs. eshton to draw her intoconversation, had first murmured over some sentimental tunes and airs on the piano, and then, having fetched a novel from thelibrary, had flung herself in haughty listlessness on a sofa, and prepared tobeguile, by the spell of fiction, the tedious hours of absence.

the room and the house were silent: onlynow and then the merriment of the billiard- players was heard from above. it was verging on dusk, and the clock hadalready given warning of the hour to dress for dinner, when little adele, who knelt byme in the drawing-room window-seat, suddenly exclaimed-- "voila, monsieur rochester, qui revient!" i turned, and miss ingram darted forwardsfrom her sofa: the others, too, looked up from their several occupations; for at thesame time a crunching of wheels and a splashing tramp of horse-hoofs becameaudible on the wet gravel.

a post-chaise was approaching."what can possess him to come home in that style?" said miss ingram. "he rode mesrour (the black horse), did henot, when he went out? and pilot was with him:--what has he done with the animals?" as she said this, she approached her tallperson and ample garments so near the window, that i was obliged to bend backalmost to the breaking of my spine: in her eagerness she did not observe me at first, but when she did, she curled her lip andmoved to another casement. the post-chaise stopped; the driver rangthe door-bell, and a gentleman alighted

attired in travelling garb; but it was notmr. rochester; it was a tall, fashionable- looking man, a stranger. "how provoking!" exclaimed miss ingram:"you tiresome monkey!" (apostrophising adele), "who perched you upin the window to give false intelligence?" and she cast on me an angry glance, as if iwere in fault. some parleying was audible in the hall, andsoon the new-comer entered. he bowed to lady ingram, as deeming her theeldest lady present. "it appears i come at an inopportune time,madam," said he, "when my friend, mr. rochester, is from home; but i arrive froma very long journey, and i think i may

presume so far on old and intimate acquaintance as to instal myself here tillhe returns." his manner was polite; his accent, inspeaking, struck me as being somewhat unusual,--not precisely foreign, but stillnot altogether english: his age might be about mr. rochester's,--between thirty and forty; his complexion was singularlysallow: otherwise he was a fine-looking man, at first sight especially. on closer examination, you detectedsomething in his face that displeased, or rather that failed to please.

his features were regular, but too relaxed:his eye was large and well cut, but the life looking out of it was a tame, vacantlife--at least so i thought. the sound of the dressing-bell dispersedthe party. it was not till after dinner that i saw himagain: he then seemed quite at his ease. but i liked his physiognomy even less thanbefore: it struck me as being at the same time unsettled and inanimate. his eye wandered, and had no meaning in itswandering: this gave him an odd look, such as i never remembered to have seen. for a handsome and not an unamiable-lookingman, he repelled me exceedingly: there was

no power in that smooth-skinned face of afull oval shape: no firmness in that aquiline nose and small cherry mouth; there was no thought on the low, even forehead;no command in that blank, brown eye. as i sat in my usual nook, and looked athim with the light of the girandoles on the mantelpiece beaming full over him--for heoccupied an arm-chair drawn close to the fire, and kept shrinking still nearer, as if he were cold, i compared him with mr.rochester. i think (with deference be it spoken) thecontrast could not be much greater between a sleek gander and a fierce falcon: betweena meek sheep and the rough-coated keen-eyed

dog, its guardian. he had spoken of mr. rochester as an oldfriend. a curious friendship theirs must have been:a pointed illustration, indeed, of the old adage that "extremes meet." two or three of the gentlemen sat near him,and i caught at times scraps of their conversation across the room. at first i could not make much sense ofwhat i heard; for the discourse of louisa eshton and mary ingram, who sat nearer tome, confused the fragmentary sentences that reached me at intervals.

these last were discussing the stranger;they both called him "a beautiful man." louisa said he was "a love of a creature,"and she "adored him;" and mary instanced his "pretty little mouth, and nice nose,"as her ideal of the charming. "and what a sweet-tempered forehead hehas!" cried louisa,--"so smooth--none of those frowning irregularities i dislike somuch; and such a placid eye and smile!" and then, to my great relief, mr. henrylynn summoned them to the other side of the room, to settle some point about thedeferred excursion to hay common. i was now able to concentrate my attentionon the group by the fire, and i presently gathered that the new-comer was called mr.mason; then i learned that he was but just

arrived in england, and that he came from some hot country: which was the reason,doubtless, his face was so sallow, and that he sat so near the hearth, and wore asurtout in the house. presently the words jamaica, kingston,spanish town, indicated the west indies as his residence; and it was with no littlesurprise i gathered, ere long, that he had there first seen and become acquainted withmr. rochester. he spoke of his friend's dislike of theburning heats, the hurricanes, and rainy seasons of that region. i knew mr. rochester had been a traveller:mrs. fairfax had said so; but i thought the

continent of europe had bounded hiswanderings; till now i had never heard a hint given of visits to more distantshores. i was pondering these things, when anincident, and a somewhat unexpected one, broke the thread of my musings. mr. mason, shivering as some one chanced toopen the door, asked for more coal to be put on the fire, which had burnt out itsflame, though its mass of cinder still shone hot and red. the footman who brought the coal, in goingout, stopped near mr. eshton's chair, and said something to him in a low voice, ofwhich i heard only the words, "old woman,"-

-"quite troublesome." "tell her she shall be put in the stocks ifshe does not take herself off," replied the magistrate."no--stop!" interrupted colonel dent. "don't send her away, eshton; we might turnthe thing to account; better consult the ladies." and speaking aloud, he continued--"ladies,you talked of going to hay common to visit the gipsy camp; sam here says that one ofthe old mother bunches is in the servants' hall at this moment, and insists upon being brought in before 'the quality,' to tellthem their fortunes.

would you like to see her?""surely, colonel," cried lady ingram, "you would not encourage such a low impostor? dismiss her, by all means, at once!" "but i cannot persuade her to go away, mylady," said the footman; "nor can any of the servants: mrs. fairfax is with her justnow, entreating her to be gone; but she has taken a chair in the chimney-corner, and says nothing shall stir her from it tillshe gets leave to come in here." "what does she want?" asked mrs. eshton. "'to tell the gentry their fortunes,' shesays, ma'am; and she swears she must and

will do it.""what is she like?" inquired the misses eshton, in a breath. "a shockingly ugly old creature, miss;almost as black as a crock." "why, she's a real sorceress!" criedfrederick lynn. "let us have her in, of course." "to be sure," rejoined his brother; "itwould be a thousand pities to throw away such a chance of fun.""my dear boys, what are you thinking about?" exclaimed mrs. lynn. "i cannot possibly countenance any suchinconsistent proceeding," chimed in the

dowager ingram. "indeed, mama, but you can--and will,"pronounced the haughty voice of blanche, as she turned round on the piano-stool; wheretill now she had sat silent, apparently examining sundry sheets of music. "i have a curiosity to hear my fortunetold: therefore, sam, order the beldame forward.""my darling blanche! recollect--" "i do--i recollect all you can suggest; andi must have my will--quick, sam!" "yes--yes--yes!" cried all the juveniles,both ladies and gentlemen. "let her come--it will be excellent sport!"

the footman still lingered."she looks such a rough one," said he. "go!" ejaculated miss ingram, and the manwent. excitement instantly seized the wholeparty: a running fire of raillery and jests was proceeding when sam returned."she won't come now," said he. "she says it's not her mission to appearbefore the 'vulgar herd' (them's her words). i must show her into a room by herself, andthen those who wish to consult her must go to her one by one.""you see now, my queenly blanche," began lady ingram, "she encroaches.

be advised, my angel girl--and--""show her into the library, of course," cut in the "angel girl." "it is not my mission to listen to herbefore the vulgar herd either: i mean to have her all to myself.is there a fire in the library?" "yes, ma'am--but she looks such a tinkler." "cease that chatter, blockhead! and do mybidding." again sam vanished; and mystery, animation,expectation rose to full flow once more. "she's ready now," said the footman, as hereappeared. "she wishes to know who will be her firstvisitor."

"i think i had better just look in upon herbefore any of the ladies go," said colonel dent."tell her, sam, a gentleman is coming." sam went and returned. "she says, sir, that she'll have nogentlemen; they need not trouble themselves to come near her; nor," he added, withdifficulty suppressing a titter, "any ladies either, except the young, andsingle." "by jove, she has taste!" exclaimed henrylynn. miss ingram rose solemnly: "i go first,"she said, in a tone which might have befitted the leader of a forlorn hope,mounting a breach in the van of his men.

"oh, my best! oh, my dearest! pause--reflect!" was her mama's cry; but she swept past her in stately silence, passed throughthe door which colonel dent held open, and we heard her enter the library. a comparative silence ensued.lady ingram thought it "le cas" to wring her hands: which she did accordingly.miss mary declared she felt, for her part, she never dared venture. amy and louisa eshton tittered under theirbreath, and looked a little frightened. the minutes passed very slowly: fifteenwere counted before the library- door again opened.

miss ingram returned to us through thearch. would she laugh?would she take it as a joke? all eyes met her with a glance of eagercuriosity, and she met all eyes with one of rebuff and coldness; she looked neitherflurried nor merry: she walked stiffly to her seat, and took it in silence. "well, blanche?" said lord ingram."what did she say, sister?" asked mary. "what did you think?how do you feel?--is she a real fortune- teller?" demanded the misses eshton. "now, now, good people," returned missingram, "don't press upon me.

really your organs of wonder and credulityare easily excited: you seem, by the importance of you all--my good mamaincluded--ascribe to this matter, absolutely to believe we have a genuine witch in the house, who is in closealliance with the old gentleman. i have seen a gipsy vagabond; she haspractised in hackneyed fashion the science of palmistry and told me what such peopleusually tell. my whim is gratified; and now i think mr.eshton will do well to put the hag in the stocks to-morrow morning, as hethreatened." miss ingram took a book, leant back in herchair, and so declined further

conversation. i watched her for nearly half-an-hour:during all that time she never turned a page, and her face grew momently darker,more dissatisfied, and more sourly expressive of disappointment. she had obviously not heard anything to heradvantage: and it seemed to me, from her prolonged fit of gloom and taciturnity,that she herself, notwithstanding her professed indifference, attached undue importance to whatever revelations had beenmade her. {during all that time she never turned apage: p184.jpg}

meantime, mary ingram, amy and louisaeshton, declared they dared not go alone; and yet they all wished to go. a negotiation was opened through the mediumof the ambassador, sam; and after much pacing to and fro, till, i think, the saidsam's calves must have ached with the exercise, permission was at last, with great difficulty, extorted from therigorous sibyl, for the three to wait upon her in a body. their visit was not so still as missingram's had been: we heard hysterical giggling and little shrieks proceeding fromthe library; and at the end of about twenty

minutes they burst the door open, and came running across the hall, as if they werehalf-scared out of their wits. "i am sure she is something not right!"they cried, one and all. "she told us such things! she knows all about us!" and they sankbreathless into the various seats the gentlemen hastened to bring them. pressed for further explanation, theydeclared she had told them of things they had said and done when they were merechildren; described books and ornaments they had in their boudoirs at home:

keepsakes that different relations hadpresented to them. they affirmed that she had even divinedtheir thoughts, and had whispered in the ear of each the name of the person sheliked best in the world, and informed them of what they most wished for. here the gentlemen interposed with earnestpetitions to be further enlightened on these two last-named points; but they gotonly blushes, ejaculations, tremors, and titters, in return for their importunity. the matrons, meantime, offered vinaigrettesand wielded fans; and again and again reiterated the expression of their concernthat their warning had not been taken in

time; and the elder gentlemen laughed, and the younger urged their services on theagitated fair ones. in the midst of the tumult, and while myeyes and ears were fully engaged in the scene before me, i heard a hem close at myelbow: i turned, and saw sam. "if you please, miss, the gipsy declaresthat there is another young single lady in the room who has not been to her yet, andshe swears she will not go till she has seen all. i thought it must be you: there is no oneelse for it. what shall i tell her?"

"oh, i will go by all means," i answered:and i was glad of the unexpected opportunity to gratify my much-excitedcuriosity. i slipped out of the room, unobserved byany eye--for the company were gathered in one mass about the trembling trio justreturned--and i closed the door quietly behind me. "if you like, miss," said sam, "i'll waitin the hall for you; and if she frightens you, just call and i'll come in.""no, sam, return to the kitchen: i am not in the least afraid." nor was i; but i was a good deal interestedand excited.

chapter xix the library looked tranquil enough as ientered it, and the sibyl--if sibyl she were--was seated snugly enough in an easy-chair at the chimney- corner. she had on a red cloak and a black bonnet:or rather, a broad- brimmed gipsy hat, tied down with a striped handkerchief under herchin. an extinguished candle stood on the table;she was bending over the fire, and seemed reading in a little black book, like aprayer-book, by the light of the blaze: she muttered the words to herself, as most old women do, while she read; she did notdesist immediately on my entrance: it

appeared she wished to finish a paragraph. i stood on the rug and warmed my hands,which were rather cold with sitting at a distance from the drawing-room fire. i felt now as composed as ever i did in mylife: there was nothing indeed in the gipsy's appearance to trouble one's calm. she shut her book and slowly looked up; herhat-brim partially shaded her face, yet i could see, as she raised it, that it was astrange one. it looked all brown and black: elf- locksbristled out from beneath a white band which passed under her chin, and came halfover her cheeks, or rather jaws: her eye

confronted me at once, with a bold anddirect gaze. "well, and you want your fortune told?" shesaid, in a voice as decided as her glance, as harsh as her features. "i don't care about it, mother; you mayplease yourself: but i ought to warn you, i have no faith." "it's like your impudence to say so: iexpected it of you; i heard it in your step as you crossed the threshold.""did you? you've a quick ear." "i have; and a quick eye and a quickbrain."

"you need them all in your trade.""i do; especially when i've customers like you to deal with. why don't you tremble?""i'm not cold." "why don't you turn pale?""i am not sick." "why don't you consult my art?" "i'm not silly."the old crone "nichered" a laugh under her bonnet and bandage; she then drew out ashort black pipe, and lighting it began to smoke. having indulged a while in this sedative,she raised her bent body, took the pipe

from her lips, and while gazing steadily atthe fire, said very deliberately--"you are cold; you are sick; and you are silly." "prove it," i rejoined."i will, in few words. you are cold, because you are alone: nocontact strikes the fire from you that is in you. you are sick; because the best of feelings,the highest and the sweetest given to man, keeps far away from you. you are silly, because, suffer as you may,you will not beckon it to approach, nor will you stir one step to meet it where itwaits you."

she again put her short black pipe to herlips, and renewed her smoking with vigour. "you might say all that to almost any onewho you knew lived as a solitary dependent in a great house." "i might say it to almost any one: butwould it be true of almost any one?" "in my circumstances." "yes; just so, in your circumstances: butfind me another precisely placed as you are.""it would be easy to find you thousands." "you could scarcely find me one. if you knew it, you are peculiarlysituated: very near happiness; yes, within

reach of it.the materials are all prepared; there only wants a movement to combine them. chance laid them somewhat apart; let thembe once approached and bliss results." "i don't understand enigmas.i never could guess a riddle in my life." "if you wish me to speak more plainly, showme your palm." "and i must cross it with silver, isuppose?" "to be sure." i gave her a shilling: she put it into anold stocking-foot which she took out of her pocket, and having tied it round andreturned it, she told me to hold out my

hand. i did.she approached her face to the palm, and pored over it without touching it."it is too fine," said she. "i can make nothing of such a hand as that;almost without lines: besides, what is in a palm?destiny is not written there." "i believe you," said i. "no," she continued, "it is in the face: onthe forehead, about the eyes, in the lines of the mouth.kneel, and lift up your head." "ah! now you are coming to reality," isaid, as i obeyed her.

"i shall begin to put some faith in youpresently." i knelt within half a yard of her. she stirred the fire, so that a ripple oflight broke from the disturbed coal: the glare, however, as she sat, only threw herface into deeper shadow: mine, it illumined. "i wonder with what feelings you came to meto-night," she said, when she had examined me a while. "i wonder what thoughts are busy in yourheart during all the hours you sit in yonder room with the fine people flittingbefore you like shapes in a magic-lantern:

just as little sympathetic communion passing between you and them as if theywere really mere shadows of human forms, and not the actual substance.""i feel tired often, sleepy sometimes, but seldom sad." "then you have some secret hope to buoy youup and please you with whispers of the future?""not i. the utmost i hope is, to save money enoughout of my earnings to set up a school some day in a little house rented by myself." "a mean nutriment for the spirit to existon: and sitting in that window- seat (you

see i know your habits )--""you have learned them from the servants." "ah! you think yourself sharp. well, perhaps i have: to speak truth, ihave an acquaintance with one of them, mrs. poole--"i started to my feet when i heard the name. "you have--have you?" thought i; "there isdiablerie in the business after all, then!" "don't be alarmed," continued the strangebeing; "she's a safe hand is mrs. poole: close and quiet; any one may reposeconfidence in her. but, as i was saying: sitting in thatwindow-seat, do you think of nothing but your future school?

have you no present interest in any of thecompany who occupy the sofas and chairs before you? is there not one face you study? one figurewhose movements you follow with at least curiosity?""i like to observe all the faces and all the figures." "but do you never single one from the rest--or it may be, two?" "i do frequently; when the gestures orlooks of a pair seem telling a tale: it amuses me to watch them." "what tale do you like best to hear?""oh, i have not much choice!

they generally run on the same theme--courtship; and promise to end in the same catastrophe--marriage." "and do you like that monotonous theme?""positively, i don't care about it: it is nothing to me.""nothing to you? when a lady, young and full of life andhealth, charming with beauty and endowed with the gifts of rank and fortune, sitsand smiles in the eyes of a gentleman you-- " "i what?""you know--and perhaps think well of." "i don't know the gentlemen here.

i have scarcely interchanged a syllablewith one of them; and as to thinking well of them, i consider some respectable, andstately, and middle-aged, and others young, dashing, handsome, and lively: but certainly they are all at liberty to be therecipients of whose smiles they please, without my feeling disposed to consider thetransaction of any moment to me." "you don't know the gentlemen here? you have not exchanged a syllable with oneof them? will you say that of the master of thehouse!" "he is not at home."

"a profound remark!a most ingenious quibble! he went to millcote this morning, and willbe back here to-night or to-morrow: does that circumstance exclude him from the listof your acquaintance--blot him, as it were, out of existence?" "no; but i can scarcely see what mr.rochester has to do with the theme you had introduced." "i was talking of ladies smiling in theeyes of gentlemen; and of late so many smiles have been shed into mr. rochester'seyes that they overflow like two cups filled above the brim: have you neverremarked that?"

"mr. rochester has a right to enjoy thesociety of his guests." "no question about his right: but have younever observed that, of all the tales told here about matrimony, mr. rochester hasbeen favoured with the most lively and the most continuous?" "the eagerness of a listener quickens thetongue of a narrator." i said this rather to myself than to thegipsy, whose strange talk, voice, manner, had by this time wrapped me in a kind ofdream. one unexpected sentence came from her lipsafter another, till i got involved in a web of mystification; and wondered what unseenspirit had been sitting for weeks by my

heart watching its workings and takingrecord of every pulse. "eagerness of a listener!" repeated she:"yes; mr. rochester has sat by the hour, his ear inclined to the fascinating lipsthat took such delight in their task of communicating; and mr. rochester was so willing to receive and looked so gratefulfor the pastime given him; you have noticed this?""grateful! i cannot remember detecting gratitude inhis face." "detecting!you have analysed, then. and what did you detect, if not gratitude?"

i said nothing."you have seen love: have you not?--and, looking forward, you have seen him married,and beheld his bride happy?" "humph! not exactly.your witch's skill is rather at fault sometimes.""what the devil have you seen, then?" "never mind: i came here to inquire, not toconfess. is it known that mr. rochester is to bemarried?" "yes; and to the beautiful miss ingram." "shortly?"

"appearances would warrant that conclusion:and, no doubt (though, with an audacity that wants chastising out of you, you seemto question it), they will be a superlatively happy pair. he must love such a handsome, noble, witty,accomplished lady; and probably she loves him, or, if not his person, at least hispurse. i know she considers the rochester estateeligible to the last degree; though (god pardon me!) i told her something on that point about anhour ago which made her look wondrous grave: the corners of her mouth fell halfan inch.

i would advise her blackaviced suitor tolook out: if another comes, with a longer or clearer rent-roll,--he's dished--" "but, mother, i did not come to hear mr.rochester's fortune: i came to hear my own; and you have told me nothing of it." "your fortune is yet doubtful: when iexamined your face, one trait contradicted another.chance has meted you a measure of happiness: that i know. i knew it before i came here this evening.she has laid it carefully on one side for you.i saw her do it.

it depends on yourself to stretch out yourhand, and take it up: but whether you will do so, is the problem i study.kneel again on the rug." "don't keep me long; the fire scorches me." {she did not stoop towards me, but onlygazed, leaning back in her chair: p190.jpg} i knelt.she did not stoop towards me, but only gazed, leaning back in her chair. she began muttering,-- "the flame flickers in the eye; the eyeshines like dew; it looks soft and full of feeling; it smiles at my jargon: it issusceptible; impression follows impression

through its clear sphere; where it ceases to smile, it is sad; an unconsciouslassitude weighs on the lid: that signifies melancholy resulting from loneliness. it turns from me; it will not sufferfurther scrutiny; it seems to deny, by a mocking glance, the truth of thediscoveries i have already made,--to disown the charge both of sensibility and chagrin: its pride and reserve only confirm me in myopinion. the eye is favourable. "as to the mouth, it delights at times inlaughter; it is disposed to impart all that

the brain conceives; though i daresay itwould be silent on much the heart experiences. mobile and flexible, it was never intendedto be compressed in the eternal silence of solitude: it is a mouth which should speakmuch and smile often, and have human affection for its interlocutor. that feature too is propitious."i see no enemy to a fortunate issue but in the brow; and that brow professes to say,--'i can live alone, if self-respect, and circumstances require me so to do. i need not sell my soul to buy bliss.i have an inward treasure born with me,

which can keep me alive if all extraneousdelights should be withheld, or offered only at a price i cannot afford to give.' the forehead declares, 'reason sits firmand holds the reins, and she will not let the feelings burst away and hurry her towild chasms. the passions may rage furiously, like trueheathens, as they are; and the desires may imagine all sorts of vain things: butjudgment shall still have the last word in every argument, and the casting vote inevery decision. strong wind, earthquake-shock, and fire maypass by: but i shall follow the guiding of that still small voice which interprets thedictates of conscience.'

"well said, forehead; your declarationshall be respected. i have formed my plans--right plans i deemthem--and in them i have attended to the claims of conscience, the counsels ofreason. i know how soon youth would fade and bloomperish, if, in the cup of bliss offered, but one dreg of shame, or one flavour ofremorse were detected; and i do not want sacrifice, sorrow, dissolution--such is notmy taste. i wish to foster, not to blight--to earngratitude, not to wring tears of blood--no, nor of brine: my harvest must be in smiles,in endearments, in sweet--that will do. i think i rave in a kind of exquisitedelirium.

i should wish now to protract this momentad infinitum; but i dare not. so far i have governed myself thoroughly. i have acted as i inwardly swore i wouldact; but further might try me beyond my strength.rise, miss eyre: leave me; the play is played out'." where was i?did i wake or sleep? had i been dreaming?did i dream still? the old woman's voice had changed: heraccent, her gesture, and all were familiar to me as my own face in a glass--as thespeech of my own tongue.

i got up, but did not go. i looked; i stirred the fire, and i lookedagain: but she drew her bonnet and her bandage closer about her face, and againbeckoned me to depart. the flame illuminated her hand stretchedout: roused now, and on the alert for discoveries, i at once noticed that hand. it was no more the withered limb of eldthan my own; it was a rounded supple member, with smooth fingers, symmetricallyturned; a broad ring flashed on the little finger, and stooping forward, i looked at it, and saw a gem i had seen a hundredtimes before.

again i looked at the face; which was nolonger turned from me--on the contrary, the bonnet was doffed, the bandage displaced,the head advanced. "well, jane, do you know me?" asked thefamiliar voice. "only take off the red cloak, sir, andthen--" "but the string is in a knot--help me." "break it, sir.""there, then--'off, ye lendings!'" and mr. rochester stepped out of hisdisguise. "now, sir, what a strange idea!" "but well carried out, eh?don't you think so?"

"with the ladies you must have managedwell." "but not with you?" "you did not act the character of a gipsywith me." "what character did i act?my own?" "no; some unaccountable one. in short, i believe you have been trying todraw me out--or in; you have been talking nonsense to make me talk nonsense.it is scarcely fair, sir." "do you forgive me, jane?" "i cannot tell till i have thought it allover.

if, on reflection, i find i have falleninto no great absurdity, i shall try to forgive you; but it was not right." "oh, you have been very correct--verycareful, very sensible." i reflected, and thought, on the whole, ihad. it was a comfort; but, indeed, i had beenon my guard almost from the beginning of the interview.something of masquerade i suspected. i knew gipsies and fortune-tellers did notexpress themselves as this seeming old woman had expressed herself; besides i hadnoted her feigned voice, her anxiety to conceal her features.

but my mind had been running on gracepoole--that living enigma, that mystery of mysteries, as i considered her.i had never thought of mr. rochester. "well," said he, "what are you musingabout? what does that grave smile signify?""wonder and self-congratulation, sir. i have your permission to retire now, isuppose?" "no; stay a moment; and tell me what thepeople in the drawing-room yonder are doing." "discussing the gipsy, i daresay.""sit down!--let me hear what they said about me.""i had better not stay long, sir; it must

be near eleven o'clock. oh, are you aware, mr. rochester, that astranger has arrived here since you left this morning?""a stranger!--no; who can it be? i expected no one; is he gone?" "no; he said he had known you long, andthat he could take the liberty of installing himself here till you returned.""the devil he did! did he give his name?" "his name is mason, sir; and he comes fromthe west indies; from spanish town, in jamaica, i think."mr. rochester was standing near me; he had

taken my hand, as if to lead me to a chair. as i spoke he gave my wrist a convulsivegrip; the smile on his lips froze: apparently a spasm caught his breath. "mason!--the west indies!" he said, in thetone one might fancy a speaking automaton to enounce its single words; "mason!--thewest indies!" he reiterated; and he went over the syllables three times, growing, in the intervals of speaking, whiter thanashes: he hardly seemed to know what he was doing."do you feel ill, sir?" i inquired.

"jane, i've got a blow; i've got a blow,jane!" he staggered."oh, lean on me, sir." "jane, you offered me your shoulder oncebefore; let me have it now." "yes, sir, yes; and my arm."he sat down, and made me sit beside him. holding my hand in both his own, he chafedit; gazing on me, at the same time, with the most troubled and dreary look. "my little friend!" said he, "i wish i werein a quiet island with only you; and trouble, and danger, and hideousrecollections removed from me." "can i help you, sir?--i'd give my life toserve you."

"jane, if aid is wanted, i'll seek it atyour hands; i promise you that." "thank you, sir. tell me what to do,--i'll try, at least, todo it." "fetch me now, jane, a glass of wine fromthe dining-room: they will be at supper there; and tell me if mason is with them,and what he is doing." i went. i found all the party in the dining-room atsupper, as mr. rochester had said; they were not seated at table,--the supper wasarranged on the sideboard; each had taken what he chose, and they stood about here

and there in groups, their plates andglasses in their hands. every one seemed in high glee; laughter andconversation were general and animated. mr. mason stood near the fire, talking tocolonel and mrs. dent, and appeared as merry as any of them. i filled a wine-glass (i saw miss ingramwatch me frowningly as i did so: she thought i was taking a liberty, i daresay),and i returned to the library. mr. rochester's extreme pallor haddisappeared, and he looked once more firm and stern.he took the glass from my hand. "here is to your health, ministrantspirit!" he said.

he swallowed the contents and returned itto me. "what are they doing, jane?" "laughing and talking, sir.""they don't look grave and mysterious, as if they had heard something strange?""not at all: they are full of jests and gaiety." "and mason?""he was laughing too." "if all these people came in a body andspat at me, what would you do, jane?" "turn them out of the room, sir, if icould." he half smiled.

"but if i were to go to them, and they onlylooked at me coldly, and whispered sneeringly amongst each other, and thendropped off and left me one by one, what then? would you go with them?""i rather think not, sir: i should have more pleasure in staying with you.""to comfort me?" "yes, sir, to comfort you, as well as icould." "and if they laid you under a ban foradhering to me?" "i, probably, should know nothing abouttheir ban; and if i did, i should care nothing about it.""then, you could dare censure for my sake?"

"i could dare it for the sake of any friendwho deserved my adherence; as you, i am sure, do." "go back now into the room; step quietly upto mason, and whisper in his ear that mr. rochester is come and wishes to see him:show him in here and then leave me." "yes, sir." i did his behest.the company all stared at me as i passed straight among them. i sought mr. mason, delivered the message,and preceded him from the room: i ushered him into the library, and then i wentupstairs.

at a late hour, after i had been in bedsome time, i heard the visitors repair to their chambers: i distinguished mr.rochester's voice, and heard him say, "this way, mason; this is your room." he spoke cheerfully: the gay tones set myheart at ease. i was soon asleep. chapter xx i had forgotten to draw my curtain, which iusually did, and also to let down my window-blind. the consequence was, that when the moon,which was full and bright (for the night

was fine), came in her course to that spacein the sky opposite my casement, and looked in at me through the unveiled panes, herglorious gaze roused me. awaking in the dead of night, i opened myeyes on her disk--silver-white and crystal clear. it was beautiful, but too solemn; i halfrose, and stretched my arm to draw the curtain.good god! what a cry! the night--its silence--its rest, was rentin twain by a savage, a sharp, a shrilly sound that ran from end to end ofthornfield hall. my pulse stopped: my heart stood still; mystretched arm was paralysed.

the cry died, and was not renewed. indeed, whatever being uttered that fearfulshriek could not soon repeat it: not the widest-winged condor on the andes could,twice in succession, send out such a yell from the cloud shrouding his eyrie. the thing delivering such utterance mustrest ere it could repeat the effort. it came out of the third storey; for itpassed overhead. and overhead--yes, in the room just abovemy chamber-ceiling--i now heard a struggle: a deadly one it seemed from the noise; anda half-smothered voice shouted-- "help! help! help!" three times rapidly.

"will no one come?" it cried; and then,while the staggering and stamping went on wildly, i distinguished through plank andplaster:-- "rochester! rochester! for god's sake, come!"a chamber-door opened: some one ran, or rushed, along the gallery.another step stamped on the flooring above and something fell; and there was silence. i had put on some clothes, though horrorshook all my limbs; i issued from my apartment. the sleepers were all aroused:ejaculations, terrified murmurs sounded in

every room; door after door unclosed; onelooked out and another looked out; the gallery filled. gentlemen and ladies alike had quittedtheir beds; and "oh! what is it?"--"who is hurt?"--"what has happened?"--"fetch alight!"--"is it fire?"--"are there robbers?"--"where shall we run?" wasdemanded confusedly on all hands. but for the moonlight they would have beenin complete darkness. they ran to and fro; they crowded together:some sobbed, some stumbled: the confusion was inextricable."where the devil is rochester?" cried colonel dent.

"i cannot find him in his bed.""here! here!" was shouted in return. "be composed, all of you: i'm coming." and the door at the end of the galleryopened, and mr. rochester advanced with a candle: he had just descended from theupper storey. one of the ladies ran to him directly; sheseized his arm: it was miss ingram. "what awful event has taken place?" saidshe. "speak! let us know the worst at once!" "but don't pull me down or strangle me," hereplied: for the misses eshton were clinging about him now; and the twodowagers, in vast white wrappers, were

bearing down on him like ships in fullsail. "all's right!--all's right!" he cried."it's a mere rehearsal of much ado about nothing. ladies, keep off, or i shall waxdangerous." and dangerous he looked: his black eyesdarted sparks. calming himself by an effort, he added-- "a servant has had the nightmare; that isall. she's an excitable, nervous person: sheconstrued her dream into an apparition, or something of that sort, no doubt; and hastaken a fit with fright.

now, then, i must see you all back intoyour rooms; for, till the house is settled, she cannot be looked after.gentlemen, have the goodness to set the ladies the example. miss ingram, i am sure you will not fail inevincing superiority to idle terrors. amy and louisa, return to your nests like apair of doves, as you are. mesdames" (to the dowagers), "you will takecold to a dead certainty, if you stay in this chill gallery any longer." and so, by dint of alternate coaxing andcommanding, he contrived to get them all once more enclosed in their separatedormitories.

i did not wait to be ordered back to mine,but retreated unnoticed, as unnoticed i had left it. not, however, to go to bed: on thecontrary, i began and dressed myself carefully. the sounds i had heard after the scream,and the words that had been uttered, had probably been heard only by me; for theyhad proceeded from the room above mine: but they assured me that it was not a servant's dream which had thus struck horror throughthe house; and that the explanation mr. rochester had given was merely an inventionframed to pacify his guests.

i dressed, then, to be ready foremergencies. when dressed, i sat a long time by thewindow looking out over the silent grounds and silvered fields and waiting for i knewnot what. it seemed to me that some event must followthe strange cry, struggle, and call. no: stillness returned: each murmur andmovement ceased gradually, and in about an hour thornfield hall was again as hushed asa desert. it seemed that sleep and night had resumedtheir empire. meantime the moon declined: she was aboutto set. not liking to sit in the cold and darkness,i thought i would lie down on my bed,

dressed as i was. i left the window, and moved with littlenoise across the carpet; as i stooped to take off my shoes, a cautious hand tappedlow at the door. "am i wanted?" i asked."are you up?" asked the voice i expected to hear, viz., my master's."yes, sir." "and dressed?" "yes.""come out, then, quietly." i obeyed.mr. rochester stood in the gallery holding

a light. "i want you," he said: "come this way: takeyour time, and make no noise." my slippers were thin: i could walk thematted floor as softly as a cat. he glided up the gallery and up the stairs,and stopped in the dark, low corridor of the fateful third storey: i had followedand stood at his side. "have you a sponge in your room?" he askedin a whisper. "yes, sir.""have you any salts--volatile salts?" "yes." "go back and fetch both."i returned, sought the sponge on the

washstand, the salts in my drawer, and oncemore retraced my steps. he still waited; he held a key in his hand:approaching one of the small, black doors, he put it in the lock; he paused, andaddressed me again. "you don't turn sick at the sight ofblood?" "i think i shall not: i have never beentried yet." i felt a thrill while i answered him; butno coldness, and no faintness. "just give me your hand," he said: "it willnot do to risk a fainting fit." i put my fingers into his. "warm and steady," was his remark: heturned the key and opened the door.

i saw a room i remembered to have seenbefore, the day mrs. fairfax showed me over the house: it was hung with tapestry; butthe tapestry was now looped up in one part, and there was a door apparent, which hadthen been concealed. this door was open; a light shone out ofthe room within: i heard thence a snarling, snatching sound, almost like a dogquarrelling. mr. rochester, putting down his candle,said to me, "wait a minute," and he went forward to the inner apartment. a shout of laughter greeted his entrance;noisy at first, and terminating in grace poole's own goblin ha! ha!she then was there.

he made some sort of arrangement withoutspeaking, though i heard a low voice address him: he came out and closed thedoor behind him. "here, jane!" he said; and i walked roundto the other side of a large bed, which with its drawn curtains concealed aconsiderable portion of the chamber. an easy-chair was near the bed-head: a mansat in it, dressed with the exception of his coat; he was still; his head leantback; his eyes were closed. mr. rochester held the candle over him; irecognised in his pale and seemingly lifeless face--the stranger, mason: i sawtoo that his linen on one side, and one arm, was almost soaked in blood.

"hold the candle," said mr. rochester, andi took it: he fetched a basin of water from the washstand: "hold that," said he.i obeyed. he took the sponge, dipped it in, andmoistened the corpse-like face; he asked for my smelling-bottle, and applied it tothe nostrils. mr. mason shortly unclosed his eyes; hegroaned. mr. rochester opened the shirt of thewounded man, whose arm and shoulder were bandaged: he sponged away blood, tricklingfast down. "is there immediate danger?" murmured mr.mason. "pooh!no--a mere scratch.

don't be so overcome, man: bear up! i'll fetch a surgeon for you now, myself:you'll be able to be removed by morning, i hope.jane," he continued. "sir?" "i shall have to leave you in this roomwith this gentleman, for an hour, or perhaps two hours: you will sponge theblood as i do when it returns: if he feels faint, you will put the glass of water on that stand to his lips, and your salts tohis nose. you will not speak to him on any pretext--and--richard, it will be at the peril of

your life if you speak to her: open yourlips--agitate yourself--and i'll not answer for the consequences." again the poor man groaned; he looked as ifhe dared not move; fear, either of death or of something else, appeared almost toparalyse him. mr. rochester put the now bloody spongeinto my hand, and i proceeded to use it as he had done. he watched me a second, then saying,"remember!--no conversation," he left the room. i experienced a strange feeling as the keygrated in the lock, and the sound of his

retreating step ceased to be heard. here then i was in the third storey,fastened into one of its mystic cells; night around me; a pale and bloodyspectacle under my eyes and hands; a murderess hardly separated from me by a single door: yes--that was appalling--therest i could bear; but i shuddered at the thought of grace poole bursting out uponme. i must keep to my post, however. i must watch this ghastly countenance--these blue, still lips forbidden to unclose--these eyes now shut, now opening,now wandering through the room, now fixing

on me, and ever glazed with the dulness ofhorror. i must dip my hand again and again in thebasin of blood and water, and wipe away the trickling gore. i must see the light of the unsnuffedcandle wane on my employment; the shadows darken on the wrought, antique tapestryround me, and grow black under the hangings of the vast old bed, and quiver strangely over the doors of a great cabinet opposite--whose front, divided into twelve panels, bore, in grim design, the heads of thetwelve apostles, each enclosed in its separate panel as in a frame; while above

them at the top rose an ebon crucifix and adying christ. according as the shifting obscurity andflickering gleam hovered here or glanced there, it was now the bearded physician,luke, that bent his brow; now st. john's long hair that waved; and anon the devilish face of judas, that grew out of the panel,and seemed gathering life and threatening a revelation of the arch-traitor--of satanhimself--in his subordinate's form. amidst all this, i had to listen as well aswatch: to listen for the movements of the wild beast or the fiend in yonder side den. but since mr. rochester's visit it seemedspellbound: all the night i heard but three

sounds at three long intervals,--a stepcreak, a momentary renewal of the snarling, canine noise, and a deep human groan. then my own thoughts worried me. what crime was this that lived incarnate inthis sequestered mansion, and could neither be expelled nor subdued by the owner?--whatmystery, that broke out now in fire and now in blood, at the deadest hours of night? what creature was it, that, masked in anordinary woman's face and shape, uttered the voice, now of a mocking demon, and anonof a carrion-seeking bird of prey? and this man i bent over--this commonplace,quiet stranger--how had he become involved

in the web of horror? and why had the furyflown at him? what made him seek this quarter of thehouse at an untimely season, when he should have been asleep in bed?i had heard mr. rochester assign him an apartment below--what brought him here! and why, now, was he so tame under theviolence or treachery done him? why did he so quietly submit to theconcealment mr. rochester enforced? why did mr. rochester enforce thisconcealment? his guest had been outraged, his own lifeon a former occasion had been hideously plotted against; and both attempts hesmothered in secrecy and sank in oblivion!

lastly, i saw mr. mason was submissive tomr. rochester; that the impetuous will of the latter held complete sway over theinertness of the former: the few words which had passed between them assured me ofthis. it was evident that in their formerintercourse, the passive disposition of the one had been habitually influenced by theactive energy of the other: whence then had arisen mr. rochester's dismay when he heardof mr. mason's arrival? why had the mere name of this unresistingindividual--whom his word now sufficed to control like a child--fallen on him, a fewhours since, as a thunderbolt might fall on an oak?

oh! i could not forget his look and hispaleness when he whispered: "jane, i have got a blow--i have got a blow, jane." i could not forget how the arm had trembledwhich he rested on my shoulder: and it was no light matter which could thus bow theresolute spirit and thrill the vigorous frame of fairfax rochester. "when will he come?when will he come?" i cried inwardly, as the night lingered andlingered--as my bleeding patient drooped, moaned, sickened: and neither day nor aidarrived. i had, again and again, held the water tomason's white lips; again and again offered

him the stimulating salts: my effortsseemed ineffectual: either bodily or mental suffering, or loss of blood, or all three combined, were fast prostrating hisstrength. he moaned so, and looked so weak, wild, andlost, i feared he was dying; and i might not even speak to him. the candle, wasted at last, went out; as itexpired, i perceived streaks of grey light edging the window curtains: dawn was thenapproaching. presently i heard pilot bark far below, outof his distant kennel in the courtyard: hope revived.

nor was it unwarranted: in five minutesmore the grating key, the yielding lock, warned me my watch was relieved.it could not have lasted more than two hours: many a week has seemed shorter. mr. rochester entered, and with him thesurgeon he had been to fetch. "now, carter, be on the alert," he said tothis last: "i give you but half-an-hour for dressing the wound, fastening the bandages,getting the patient downstairs and all." "but is he fit to move, sir?" "no doubt of it; it is nothing serious; heis nervous, his spirits must be kept up. come, set to work."

mr. rochester drew back the thick curtain,drew up the holland blind, let in all the daylight he could; and i was surprised andcheered to see how far dawn was advanced: what rosy streaks were beginning tobrighten the east. then he approached mason, whom the surgeonwas already handling. "now, my good fellow, how are you?" heasked. "she's done for me, i fear," was the faintreply. "not a whit!--courage! this day fortnight you'll hardly be a pinthe worse of it: you've lost a little blood; that's all.carter, assure him there's no danger."

"i can do that conscientiously," saidcarter, who had now undone the bandages; "only i wish i could have got here sooner:he would not have bled so much--but how is this? the flesh on the shoulder is torn as wellas cut. this wound was not done with a knife: therehave been teeth here!" "she bit me," he murmured. "she worried me like a tigress, whenrochester got the knife from her." "you should not have yielded: you shouldhave grappled with her at once," said mr. rochester.

"but under such circumstances, what couldone do?" returned mason. "oh, it was frightful!" he added,shuddering. "and i did not expect it: she looked soquiet at first." "i warned you," was his friend's answer; "isaid--be on your guard when you go near her. besides, you might have waited till to-morrow, and had me with you: it was mere folly to attempt the interview to-night,and alone." "i thought i could have done some good." "you thought! you thought!yes, it makes me impatient to hear you:

but, however, you have suffered, and arelikely to suffer enough for not taking my advice; so i'll say no more. carter--hurry!--hurry!the sun will soon rise, and i must have him off.""directly, sir; the shoulder is just bandaged. i must look to this other wound in the arm:she has had her teeth here too, i think." "she sucked the blood: she said she'd drainmy heart," said mason. i saw mr. rochester shudder: a singularlymarked expression of disgust, horror, hatred, warped his countenance almost todistortion; but he only said--

"come, be silent, richard, and never mindher gibberish: don't repeat it." "i wish i could forget it," was the answer. "you will when you are out of the country:when you get back to spanish town, you may think of her as dead and buried--or rather,you need not think of her at all." "impossible to forget this night!" "it is not impossible: have some energy,man. you thought you were as dead as a herringtwo hours since, and you are all alive and talking now. there!--carter has done with you or nearlyso; i'll make you decent in a trice.

jane" (he turned to me for the first timesince his re-entrance), "take this key: go down into my bedroom, and walk straightforward into my dressing-room: open the top drawer of the wardrobe and take out a clean shirt and neck-handkerchief: bring themhere; and be nimble." i went; sought the repository he hadmentioned, found the articles named, and returned with them. "now," said he, "go to the other side ofthe bed while i order his toilet; but don't leave the room: you may be wanted again."i retired as directed. "was anybody stirring below when you wentdown, jane?" inquired mr. rochester

presently."no, sir; all was very still." "we shall get you off cannily, dick: and itwill be better, both for your sake, and for that of the poor creature in yonder.i have striven long to avoid exposure, and i should not like it to come at last. here, carter, help him on with his waist-coat. where did you leave your furred cloak?you can't travel a mile without that, i know, in this damned cold climate. in your room?--jane, run down to mr.mason's room,--the one next mine,--and fetch a cloak you will see there."again i ran, and again returned, bearing an

immense mantle lined and edged with fur. "now, i've another errand for you," said myuntiring master; "you must away to my room again. what a mercy you are shod with velvet,jane!--a clod-hopping messenger would never do at this juncture. you must open the middle drawer of mytoilet-table and take out a little phial and a little glass you will find there,--quick!" i flew thither and back, bringing thedesired vessels. "that's well!

now, doctor, i shall take the liberty ofadministering a dose myself, on my own responsibility. i got this cordial at rome, of an italiancharlatan--a fellow you would have kicked, carter. it is not a thing to be usedindiscriminately, but it is good upon occasion: as now, for instance.jane, a little water." he held out the tiny glass, and i halffilled it from the water-bottle on the washstand."that will do;--now wet the lip of the phial."

i did so; he measured twelve drops of acrimson liquid, and presented it to mason. "drink, richard: it will give you the heartyou lack, for an hour or so." "but will it hurt me?--is it inflammatory?" "drink! drink! drink!"mr. mason obeyed, because it was evidently useless to resist.he was dressed now: he still looked pale, but he was no longer gory and sullied. mr. rochester let him sit three minutesafter he had swallowed the liquid; he then took his arm--"now i am sure you can get on your feet," he said--"try."

the patient rose."carter, take him under the other shoulder. be of good cheer, richard; step out--that'sit!" "i do feel better," remarked mr. mason. "i am sure you do. now, jane, trip on before us away to thebackstairs; unbolt the side-passage door, and tell the driver of the post-chaise youwill see in the yard--or just outside, for i told him not to drive his rattling wheels over the pavement--to be ready; we arecoming: and, jane, if any one is about, come to the foot of the stairs and hem."

it was by this time half-past five, and thesun was on the point of rising; but i found the kitchen still dark and silent. the side-passage door was fastened; iopened it with as little noise as possible: all the yard was quiet; but the gates stoodwide open, and there was a post-chaise, with horses ready harnessed, and driverseated on the box, stationed outside. i approached him, and said the gentlemenwere coming; he nodded: then i looked carefully round and listened. the stillness of early morning slumberedeverywhere; the curtains were yet drawn over the servants' chamber windows; littlebirds were just twittering in the blossom-

blanched orchard trees, whose boughs drooped like white garlands over the wallenclosing one side of the yard; the carriage horses stamped from time to timein their closed stables: all else was still. the gentlemen now appeared.mason, supported by mr. rochester and the surgeon, seemed to walk with tolerableease: they assisted him into the chaise; carter followed. "take care of him," said mr. rochester tothe latter, "and keep him at your house till he is quite well: i shall ride over ina day or two to see how he gets on.

richard, how is it with you?" "the fresh air revives me, fairfax.""leave the window open on his side, carter; there is no wind--good-bye, dick.""fairfax--" "well what is it?" "let her be taken care of; let her betreated as tenderly as may be: let her--" he stopped and burst into tears. "i do my best; and have done it, and willdo it," was the answer: he shut up the chaise door, and the vehicle drove away. "yet would to god there was an end of allthis!" added mr. rochester, as he closed

and barred the heavy yard-gates. this done, he moved with slow step andabstracted air towards a door in the wall bordering the orchard. i, supposing he had done with me, preparedto return to the house; again, however, i heard him call "jane!"he had opened feel portal and stood at it, waiting for me. "come where there is some freshness, for afew moments," he said; "that house is a mere dungeon: don't you feel it so?""it seems to me a splendid mansion, sir." "the glamour of inexperience is over youreyes," he answered; "and you see it through

a charmed medium: you cannot discern thatthe gilding is slime and the silk draperies cobwebs; that the marble is sordid slate, and the polished woods mere refuse chipsand scaly bark. now here" (he pointed to the leafyenclosure we had entered) "all is real, sweet, and pure." he strayed down a walk edged with box, withapple trees, pear trees, and cherry trees on one side, and a border on the other fullof all sorts of old-fashioned flowers, stocks, sweet-williams, primroses, pansies, mingled with southernwood, sweet-briar, andvarious fragrant herbs.

they were fresh now as a succession ofapril showers and gleams, followed by a lovely spring morning, could make them: thesun was just entering the dappled east, and his light illumined the wreathed and dewy orchard trees and shone down the quietwalks under them. "jane, will you have a flower?"he gathered a half-blown rose, the first on the bush, and offered it to me. "thank you, sir.""do you like this sunrise, jane? that sky with its high and light cloudswhich are sure to melt away as the day waxes warm--this placid and balmlyatmosphere?"

"i do, very much." "you have passed a strange night, jane.""yes, sir." "and it has made you look pale--were youafraid when i left you alone with mason?" "i was afraid of some one coming out of theinner room." "but i had fastened the door--i had the keyin my pocket: i should have been a careless shepherd if i had left a lamb--my pet lamb--so near a wolf's den, unguarded: you were safe." "will grace poole live here still, sir?""oh yes! don't trouble your head about her- -put the thing out of your thoughts.""yet it seems to me your life is hardly

secure while she stays." "never fear--i will take care of myself.""is the danger you apprehended last night gone by now, sir?""i cannot vouch for that till mason is out of england: nor even then. to live, for me, jane, is to stand on acrater-crust which may crack and spue fire any day.""but mr. mason seems a man easily led. your influence, sir, is evidently potentwith him: he will never set you at defiance or wilfully injure you.""oh, no! mason will not defy me; nor, knowing it,will he hurt me--but, unintentionally, he

might in a moment, by one careless word,deprive me, if not of life, yet for ever of happiness." "tell him to be cautious, sir: let him knowwhat you fear, and show him how to avert the danger."he laughed sardonically, hastily took my hand, and as hastily threw it from him. "if i could do that, simpleton, where wouldthe danger be? annihilated in a moment. ever since i have known mason, i have onlyhad to say to him 'do that,' and the thing has been done.

but i cannot give him orders in this case:i cannot say 'beware of harming me, richard;' for it is imperative that ishould keep him ignorant that harm to me is possible. now you look puzzled; and i will puzzle youfurther. you are my little friend, are you not?""i like to serve you, sir, and to obey you in all that is right." "precisely: i see you do. i see genuine contentment in your gait andmien, your eye and face, when you are helping me and pleasing me--working for me,and with me, in, as you characteristically

say, 'all that is right:' for if i bid you do what you thought wrong, there wouldbe no light-footed running, no neat-handed alacrity, no lively glance and animatedcomplexion. my friend would then turn to me, quiet andpale, and would say, 'no, sir; that is impossible: i cannot do it, because it iswrong;' and would become immutable as a fixed star. well, you too have power over me, and mayinjure me: yet i dare not show you where i am vulnerable, lest, faithful and friendlyas you are, you should transfix me at once."

"if you have no more to fear from mr. masonthan you have from me, sir, you are very safe.""god grant it may be so! here, jane, is an arbour; sit down." the arbour was an arch in the wall, linedwith ivy; it contained a rustic seat. mr. rochester took it, leaving room,however, for me: but i stood before him. "sit," he said; "the bench is long enoughfor two. you don't hesitate to take a place at myside, do you? is that wrong, jane?" i answered him by assuming it: to refusewould, i felt, have been unwise.

"now, my little friend, while the sundrinks the dew--while all the flowers in this old garden awake and expand, and thebirds fetch their young ones' breakfast out of the thornfield, and the early bees do their first spell of work--i'll put a caseto you, which you must endeavour to suppose your own: but first, look at me, and tellme you are at ease, and not fearing that i err in detaining you, or that you err instaying." "no, sir; i am content." "well then, jane, call to aid your fancy:--suppose you were no longer a girl well reared and disciplined, but a wild boyindulged from childhood upwards; imagine

yourself in a remote foreign land; conceive that you there commit a capital error, nomatter of what nature or from what motives, but one whose consequences must follow youthrough life and taint all your existence. mind, i don't say a crime; i am notspeaking of shedding of blood or any other guilty act, which might make theperpetrator amenable to the law: my word is error. the results of what you have done become intime to you utterly insupportable; you take measures to obtain relief: unusualmeasures, but neither unlawful nor culpable.

still you are miserable; for hope hasquitted you on the very confines of life: your sun at noon darkens in an eclipse,which you feel will not leave it till the time of setting. bitter and base associations have becomethe sole food of your memory: you wander here and there, seeking rest in exile:happiness in pleasure--i mean in heartless, sensual pleasure--such as dulls intellectand blights feeling. heart-weary and soul-withered, you comehome after years of voluntary banishment: you make a new acquaintance--how or whereno matter: you find in this stranger much of the good and bright qualities which you

have sought for twenty years, and neverbefore encountered; and they are all fresh, healthy, without soil and without taint. such society revives, regenerates: you feelbetter days come back--higher wishes, purer feelings; you desire to recommence yourlife, and to spend what remains to you of days in a way more worthy of an immortalbeing. to attain this end, are you justified inoverleaping an obstacle of custom--a mere conventional impediment which neither yourconscience sanctifies nor your judgment approves?" he paused for an answer: and what was i tosay?

oh, for some good spirit to suggest ajudicious and satisfactory response! vain aspiration! the west wind whispered in the ivy roundme; but no gentle ariel borrowed its breath as a medium of speech: the birds sang inthe tree-tops; but their song, however sweet, was inarticulate. again mr. rochester propounded his query: "is the wandering and sinful, but now rest-seeking and repentant, man justified in daring the world's opinion, in order toattach to him for ever this gentle, gracious, genial stranger, thereby securing

his own peace of mind and regeneration oflife?" "sir," i answered, "a wanderer's repose ora sinner's reformation should never depend on a fellow-creature. men and women die; philosophers falter inwisdom, and christians in goodness: if any one you know has suffered and erred, lethim look higher than his equals for strength to amend and solace to heal." "but the instrument--the instrument!god, who does the work, ordains the instrument. i have myself--i tell it you withoutparable--been a worldly, dissipated,

restless man; and i believe i have foundthe instrument for my cure in--" he paused: the birds went on carolling, theleaves lightly rustling. i almost wondered they did not check theirsongs and whispers to catch the suspended revelation; but they would have had to waitmany minutes--so long was the silence protracted. at last i looked up at the tardy speaker:he was looking eagerly at me. "little friend," said he, in quite achanged tone--while his face changed too, losing all its softness and gravity, andbecoming harsh and sarcastic--"you have noticed my tender penchant for miss ingram:

don't you think if i married her she wouldregenerate me with a vengeance?" he got up instantly, went quite to theother end of the walk, and when he came back he was humming a tune. "jane, jane," said he, stopping before me,"you are quite pale with your vigils: don't you curse me for disturbing your rest?""curse you? no, sir." "shake hands in confirmation of the word.what cold fingers! they were warmer last night when i touchedthem at the door of the mysterious chamber. jane, when will you watch with me again?"

"whenever i can be useful, sir.""for instance, the night before i am married!i am sure i shall not be able to sleep. will you promise to sit up with me to bearme company? to you i can talk of my lovely one: for nowyou have seen her and know her." "she's a rare one, is she not, jane?""yes, sir." "a strapper--a real strapper, jane: big,brown, and buxom; with hair just such as the ladies of carthage must have had. bless me! there's dent and lynn in thestables! go in by the shrubbery, through thatwicket."

as i went one way, he went another, and iheard him in the yard, saying cheerfully-- "mason got the start of you all thismorning; he was gone before sunrise: i rose at four to see him off."