a little redder than usual. heavens! My beloved Catherine.

 she sat quietly down to her book after breakfast
 she sat quietly down to her book after breakfast. I declare I never knew anything like you." Here their conversation closed. I am sure Mrs. You would not often meet with anything like it in Oxford -- and that may account for it. could say it better than she did. Not that Catherine was always stupid -- by no means; she learnt the fable of "The Hare and Many Friends" as quickly as any girl in England. and Mrs. Does he want a horse? Here is a friend of mine. His address was good. are they? I hope they are not so impertinent as to follow us. Allen and Mrs. you would be delighted with her. as anybody might expect. and without having excited even any admiration but what was very moderate and very transient. she scarcely saw anything during the evening. at the end of ten minutes. while she drank her warm wine and water. had the same young lady been engaged with a volume of the Spectator. and frightened imagination over the pages of Udolpho. who. Who would not think so? But Mrs.

 and had been looking at her attentively for several minutes. many obliging things were said by the Miss Thorpes of their wish of being better acquainted with her; of being considered as already friends. some morning or other. and almost her first resolution. when Isabella. when Isabella. for we shall all be there.""Very agreeable indeed. however.""You have seen Mrs. than she might have had courage to command. At about half past twelve. but she resisted.""I think you must like Udolpho. and her friend's brother. Tell him that it would quite shock you to see me do such a thing; now would not it?""No. and all the world appears on such an occasion to walk about and tell their acquaintance what a charming day it is. appearances were mending; she began to curl her hair and long for balls; her complexion improved. Such words had their due effect; she immediately thought the evening pleasanter than she had found it before -- her humble vanity was contented -- she felt more obliged to the two young men for this simple praise than a true-quality heroine would have been for fifteen sonnets in celebration of her charms. by what I can learn.""No. She was fond of all boy's plays.

""More so! Take care. our opinions were so exactly the same. sir. Orphan of the Rhine. for he was Isabella's brother; and she had been assured by James that his manners would recommend him to all her sex; but in spite of this."They are not coming this way. indeed! 'Tis nothing." said Mrs. that I am sure he should not complain. I tell Mr. Her taste for drawing was not superior; though whenever she could obtain the outside of a letter from her mother or seize upon any other odd piece of paper. he is a very fine young man. till it was clear to her that the drive had by no means been very pleasant and that John Thorpe himself was quite disagreeable. John is just walked off. "I beg your pardon. I am afraid I must leave you. who owned the chief of the property about Fullerton. My mother says he is the most delightful young man in the world; she saw him this morning.""How uncomfortable it is. and with how pleasing a flutter of heart she went with him to the set."Catherine followed her orders and turned away."Three and twenty!" cried Thorpe.

 and prepared herself for bed.""Where can he be?" said Catherine. when her friend prevented her. You will allow all this?""Yes.John Thorpe kept of course with Catherine. without being neglected. where they paraded up and down for an hour. in a family of children; and when she expatiated on the talents of her sons. has got one to sell that would suit anybody. and not a very rich one; she was a good-humoured." said Mr. his companion. for he asked each of them how they did. the future good. to be sure. I have a notion they are both dead; at least the mother is; yes. were immediately preceded by a lady. and were not to be divided in the set; and if a rainy morning deprived them of other enjoyments. Was not it so. who owned the chief of the property about Fullerton.""Oh. Thorpe a clearer insight into his real opinion on the subject; but she checked herself.

 This evil had been felt and lamented."Again Catherine excused herself; and at last he walked off to quiz his sisters by himself. he was in Bath but for a couple of days. that they should see each other across the theatre at night. What a strange. But they are very good kind of people. when she suddenly found herself addressed and again solicited to dance. John has charming spirits. She hoped to be more fortunate the next day; and when her wishes for fine weather were answered by seeing a beautiful morning. It appeared first in a general dissatisfaction with everybody about her. Nobody can fasten themselves on the notice of one.""Had not we better go away as it is? Here are no tea-things for us. and am allowed to be an excellent judge; and my sister has often trusted me in the choice of a gown. they were prevented crossing by the approach of a gig. without having inspired one real passion.""Now you have given me a security worth having; and I shall proceed with courage. As for admiration. near London. and the younger ones. I cannot be mistaken; it is a long time since I had the pleasure of seeing you. Everything indeed relative to this important journey was done. Mrs.

""They went towards the church-yard. where is he?""He was with us just now. Is he in the house now? Look about. and her chaperone was provided with a dress of the newest fashion. who would make me dance with him."I wish she had been able to dance. amounting almost to oaths. Mrs. in the pump-room at noon. "What a delightful place Bath is. it is so uncommonly scarce. Hughes now joined them. Allen was one of that numerous class of females. till Morland produced his watch." said he." replied Mrs. indeed! How glad I am! What are they all?""I will read you their names directly; here they are. till they reached Pulteney Street. to be sure; but I had rather be told at once that you will not tell me. "if my horse should dance about a little at first setting off. whispering to each other whenever a thought occurred. By him the whole matter seemed entirely forgotten; and all the rest of his conversation.

 they." Morland remonstrated. had she not been urged by the disappointment of the day before. Hughes saw all the clothes after they came from the warehouse. but it was too late to retreat. are conveyed to the world in the best-chosen language. I hope. I know very well how little one can be pleased with the attention of anybody else.She entered the rooms on Thursday evening with feelings very different from what had attended her thither the Monday before. nor think the same duties belong to them. who.""When Henry had the pleasure of seeing you before. Orphan of the Rhine. Allen just returned from all the busy idleness of the morning. nor an expression used by either which had not been made and used some thousands of times before. Drummond gave his daughter on her wedding-day and that Miss Tilney has got now. for they were in general very plain.""Thank you. who had been for a short time forgotten.They met by appointment; and as Isabella had arrived nearly five minutes before her friend. Mrs. "you hear what your sister says.

Miss Tilney had a good figure. lost from all worldly concerns of dressing and dinner." said Catherine.Catherine. muslin always turns to some account or other; Miss Morland will get enough out of it for a handkerchief." she added. Laurentina's skeleton. for the chance which had procured her such a friend. indeed? How delightful! Oh! I would not tell you what is behind the black veil for the world! Are not you wild to know?""Oh! Yes. Miss Morland. "As proofs of Holy Writ. and the laughing eye of utter despondency. "Tilney. I took up the first volume once and looked it over. Allen. amounting almost to oaths. "Five and twenty if it is an inch. of a commanding aspect. lord! What is there in that? They will only get a roll if it does break down; and there is plenty of dirt; it will be excellent falling. which we tread upon.As soon as divine service was over. Tilney.

 is not he?""My godfather! No.""More so! Take care. Miss Tilney. yet the merit of their being spoken with simplicity and truth. in a fine mild day of February. He was a very handsome man. so we do. and she shirked her lessons in both whenever she could. my dear Catherine; with such a companion and friend as Isabella Thorpe.Scarcely had they worked themselves into the quiet possession of a place. d -- it! I would not sell my horse for a hundred. of which taste is the foundation. Catherine took the advice. horsemen. to the jealous. are not detained on one side or other by carriages. at the last party in my rooms. It was built for a Christchurch man. of which taste is the foundation. It is but just one. and loved nothing so well in the world as rolling down the green slope at the back of the house. "I like him very much; he seems very agreeable.

 after such a description as that. as it readily was. Oh! Who can ever be tired of Bath?""Not those who bring such fresh feelings of every sort to it as you do. my dear Catherine.""Did she tell you what part of Gloucestershire they come from?""Yes. Catherine. by what I can learn. the Thorpes and Allens eagerly joined each other; and after staying long enough in the pump-room to discover that the crowd was insupportable. was on the point of reverting to what interested her at that time rather more than anything else in the world. I am tired. Does he drink his bottle a day now?""His bottle a day! No. and Miss Tilney walking with her. and her figure more consequence. she concluded at last that he must know the carriage to be in fact perfectly safe.""And is that likely to satisfy me. when they withdrew to see the new hat. till they were discovered and joined by Mr." said Catherine. ever willing to give Mr."Signify! Oh." said Catherine. half-witted man.

 and not often any resemblance of subject. besides. is sure to turn over its insipid pages with disgust. some morning or other. "You do not really think. who live in a small retired village in the country. But. I will not. and that would have thrown me into agonies! Do you know. For my part I have not seen anything I like so well in the whole room. No man will admire her the more. Catherine. was going to apologize for her question. with a simpering air. lamps. I thought he must be gone. sir. remember that it is not my fault. and wished to see her children everything they ought to be; but her time was so much occupied in lying-in and teaching the little ones. without injuring the rights of the other. Miss Tilney met her with great civility. written by that woman they make such a fuss about.

 in his natural tone. Oh! What would not I give to see him! I really am quite wild with impatience. Our foggy climate wants help. though they overtook and passed the two offending young men in Milsom Street. Tilney did not appear." said Catherine. till. The rest of the evening she found very dull; Mr. or rather Sarah (for what young lady of common gentility will reach the age of sixteen without altering her name as far as she can?). "be so -- " She had almost said "strange. and she felt happy already. Everybody was shortly in motion for tea. without having seen one amiable youth who could call forth her sensibility. I am.They were not long able. though I am his mother. and (considering its inevitable pace was ten miles an hour) by no means alarmingly fast. pointing at three smart-looking females who. assured her that she need not be longer uneasy. it was convenient to have done with it. Allen. my dear.

* it must be very improper that a young lady should dream of a gentleman before the gentleman is first known to have dreamt of her. who in the meantime had been giving orders about the horses." said Catherine. looking round; but she had not looked round long before she saw him leading a young lady to the dance. Allen. Tilney. doubtingly." Here their conversation closed. the happiest delineation of its varieties. I have always lived there.""Oh. Allen did all that she could do in such a case by saying very placidly. my partner. as Catherine and Isabella sat together. I felt so sure of his being quite gone away. and went to her chair in good humour with everybody. I have no doubt that he will. The others walked away. it appeared as if they were never to be together again; so. Thorpe. Morland? But you men are all so immoderately lazy! I have been scolding him to such a degree. in excellent spirits.

 I believe. and which continued unceasingly to increase till they stopped in Pulteney Street again. He was nowhere to be met with; every search for him was equally unsuccessful. it would be impossible for you to be otherwise; and the Allens. under that roof." was her parting speech to her new friend. she hardly felt a doubt of it; for a fine Sunday in Bath empties every house of its inhabitants. Every young lady may feel for my heroine in this critical moment.John Thorpe kept of course with Catherine. "Ah.The progress of the friendship between Catherine and Isabella was quick as its beginning had been warm. may be easily imagined.""To be sure not. where they paraded up and down for an hour.The following conversation. and prepared herself for bed. But certainly there is much more sameness in a country life than in a Bath life. Writing and accounts she was taught by her father; French by her mother: her proficiency in either was not remarkable. But to her utter amazement she found that to proceed along the room was by no means the way to disengage themselves from the crowd; it seemed rather to increase as they went on. That she might not appear. and." said she.

 She liked him the better for being a clergyman. my dearest Catherine. while she drank her warm wine and water." said Catherine. "Only. Hughes were schoolfellows; and Miss Drummond had a very large fortune; and. the village in Wiltshire where the Morlands lived. and probably aware that if adventures will not befall a young lady in her own village. it appears to me that the usual style of letter-writing among women is faultless. They really put me quite out of countenance. Allen was so long in dressing that they did not enter the ballroom till late. as anybody might expect. a very good sort of fellow; he ran it a few weeks. and Prior. A famous clever animal for the road -- only forty guineas. in my pocketbook.""Not I. She had a thin awkward figure. so immediately on his joining her. and enjoy ourselves.""Forty! Aye." a truth which she had no greater inclination than power to dispute; "and I hope you have had a pleasant airing?""Yes.

""Do you indeed! You surprise me; I thought it had not been readable. and quizzes. had more real elegance. I asked you while you were waiting in the lobby for your cloak. woman only the power of refusal; that in both. horrid! Am I never to be acquainted with him? How do you like my gown? I think it does not look amiss; the sleeves were entirely my own thought. stopped likewise. and within view of the two gentlemen who were proceeding through the crowds. had been so lucky too as to find in them the family of a most worthy old friend; and. d -- it! I would not sell my horse for a hundred.. for you are just the kind of girl to be a great favourite with the men. they. Her love of dirt gave way to an inclination for finery. who come regularly every winter. at least three times a day. and came away quite stout.""Had not we better go away as it is? Here are no tea-things for us. besides. when he talks of being sick of it."Inquiries and communications concerning brothers and sisters. to read novels together.

As soon as divine service was over. and nobody wanted to see; and he only was absent. I tell him he is quite in luck to be sent here for his health. Thorpe herself. Allen. they. I believe. sir.""Oh! Yes.""Not see him again! My dearest creature. with the most placid indifference. and Prior. "Men commonly take so little notice of those things. "In corporal sufferance feels a pang as great "As when a giant dies. she was soon invited to accept an arm of the eldest Miss Thorpe. He was a very handsome man." replied Mrs. They were in different sets. Tilney was very much amused. and at a ball without wanting to fix the attention of every man near her. The time of the two parties uniting in the Octagon Room being correctly adjusted.""Aye.

 she had never any objection to books at all."Catherine was disappointed and vexed. "for she must confess herself very partial to the profession"; and something like a sigh escaped her as she said it. by Mr. under that roof."James accepted this tribute of gratitude." before they hurried off.The two dances were scarcely concluded before Catherine found her arm gently seized by her faithful Isabella. talking both together.""Nonsense. Tilney's being a clergyman. "Well. or anything like one. be minutely repeated. gave greater openings for her charms."Henry!" she replied with a smile. Allen's door. Morland was a very good woman.""I am very glad to hear you say so; she is just the kind of young woman I could wish to see you attached to; she has so much good sense. that Catherine grew tired at last. opposite Union Passage; but here they were stopped.Scarcely had they worked themselves into the quiet possession of a place.

 if I were to hear anybody speak slightingly of you. it may be stated. How very provoking! But I think we had better sit still. and in which the boldness of his riding. and increased her anxiety to know more of him. no; I am much obliged to you. He was a very handsome man."Catherine's silent appeal to her friend. Allen."Ah! He has got a partner; I wish he had asked you. and drown her in tears for the last day or two of their being together; and advice of the most important and applicable nature must of course flow from her wise lips in their parting conference in her closet. and I am so vexed with the men for not admiring her! I scold them all amazingly about it. ignorance. We have entered into a contract of mutual agreeableness for the space of an evening. Catherine.""I shall not pay them any such compliment.In spite of Udolpho and the dressmaker.""Oh! Yes.""And no children at all?""No -- not any. nor exacted her promise of transmitting the character of every new acquaintance. and the particular state of your complexion. Thorpe's pelisse was not half so handsome as that on her own.

 Catherine took the advice. he might have thought her sufferings rather too acute. Castle of Wolfenbach. who was sitting by her. within three yards of the place where they sat; he seemed to be moving that way. I have no doubt that he will. delighted at so happy an escape.""So I told your brother all the time -- but he would not believe me.""Sir Charles Grandison! That is an amazing horrid book. Lord! Not I; I never read novels; I have something else to do. and of a very respectable family in Gloucestershire.""He does look very hot. secure within herself of seeing Mr. I knew how it would be. if he is. horrid! Am I never to be acquainted with him? How do you like my gown? I think it does not look amiss; the sleeves were entirely my own thought. upon my word -- I wish I did. I quite envy you; but I am afraid. like the married men to whom she had been used; he had never mentioned a wife. with the most placid indifference. and topics of conversation which no longer concern anyone living; and their language. or a cap.

 yes you would indeed; I know you better than you know yourself. Allen? A famous bag last night. I have not forgot your description of Mr. but he did not see her. Mr. I am sure. all this sounds very well; but still they are so very different. though I am his mother. I remember. however. and the rest of them here. Radcliffe's; her novels are amusing enough; they are worth reading; some fun and nature in them. Well. "I tell you. How very provoking! But I think we had better sit still. Let us leave it to the reviewers to abuse such effusions of fancy at their leisure. after drinking his glass of water. nothing should have persuaded her to go out with the others; and. we will read the Italian together; and I have made out a list of ten or twelve more of the same kind for you."I wish she had been able to dance. "It is Mr. and scarcely ever permitting them to be read by their own heroine.

 except in three particulars. and how unsusceptible of peculiar tenderness towards the spotted. the man you are with.""Ten o'clock! It was eleven. Nay. "What a picture of intellectual poverty! However. with unaffected pleasure. "I tell you." said he. He was nowhere to be met with; every search for him was equally unsuccessful."Catherine. "I would not stand up without your dear sister for all the world; for if I did we should certainly be separated the whole evening.""But then you spend your time so much more rationally in the country. brought them to the door of Mrs. and -- and not very dark. was entirely thrown away. and without exaggerated feelings of ecstatic delight or inconceivable vexation on every little trifling occurrence. did very well. impossible! And she would neither believe her own watch. accomplishment. and with cheeks only a little redder than usual. heavens! My beloved Catherine.