influenced by some personal power in the man which she felt moved to resent he compelled in her an interest which she had never yet felt in any member of the other sex are you resident in mrs s household he asked as he took the cup from her hand with a word of thanks yes i have been here exactly six days it is not long he said with a smile but long enough i to convince you that you will be very happy here our friends possess in a wonderful degree the gift of making their fellow creatures feel happy and at home at the hour as he uttered these words his glance fell upon who under the influence of congenial society was in one of his most brilliant moods saw that his glance was at once affectionate and admiring and it was an instant to her confidence you are quite right she said with an absence of reserve which surprised herself i have never met people like them i already feel as if i had been here for years of course you are aware that i come from a colder where we make friends slowly although i think i may say that when are made they are worth the keeping i have only been privileged to know one of humble origin but i observed in her the very characteristic of which you speak have you only recently come from the north � i have been in london only three weeks answered and observing her closely he saw a painful shadow gather in her eyes there were few moments when the strange confusion and uncertainty of her life were absent from s mind at the hour three weeks he repeated it is not long i was bom in london and i love the very stones of her streets that i suppose seems incredible to you why should it asked i have myself already felt its strange charm i suppose it is the the volume of its life which appeals to one i don t wonder that you who have been born here love it better than any place in the world chapter xii regarded her attentively he had never seen a face which interested him more he discerned in her a reserve of power a strong individuality which made him desire some closer knowledge the study of humanity was the business of his life to find a new type in this unexpected corner was an for piece of good fortune so he might have expressed himself had he put his thoughts into words in what part of scotland is your home he asked i don t know much but your name has a sound you are quite right i belong to a very old family � a family that unfortunately for me and for others has fallen on very evil days she lowered her voice as she uttered these words half ashamed indeed of having at the hour given even so little of her confidence the majority of families both distinguished and obscure have a record of evil days in their annals he said it is one of the inexorable laws of nature that none of us either in our individual or capacity shall enjoy the sunshine of prosperity for ever i am sure i need not remind you that it is not desirable that we should there are few things more fatal to mental or spiritual growth than unbroken success i have not thought about it in that light said lifting her clear beautiful eyes full of the intelligence to his face perhaps because i have had so little of brightness or success in my life it is not unnatural that i should sometimes wish for a taste of it not unnatural at all he said quickly but you will certainly have your share perhaps even now it may be within reach i trust that you are not cast on this great city i was quite until i had the good fortune to meet with mrs i take it as an omen that the tide of your at the hour fortune has turned then he said lightly i am sure that you will find my old friends and and jack very promising pupils especially i know that her father and mother grieve over her unmistakable literary bent why should they if it is there nothing will keep it in check i suppose you have already heard our friend on the woes of the literary life he is specially eloquent on the degradation of the public taste there was not an of sarcasm or in this speech laughed and the unusual brightness of her look made her appear for the moment almost beautiful she had the clear ruddy northern colour and a freshness of look and manner which to seemed altogether delightful suddenly she looked him full in the face and asked him a straight question are you a literary man i have that honour he answered with a little bow for the last ten years i have been more or less before the reading public though somewhat in disguise i have found it convenient for many reasons to strictly i i at the hour to my de after a moment s hesitation he mentioned a name so well known in the world of letters that was for the moment aghast wondering how she had dared to speak so familiarly to a man for whose written words the world waited with respect now if you look so aghast i shall regret my moment of confidence he said with a smile perhaps you are one of those who regard literary men something like the of the � best viewed from a respectable distance if so pray allow me to become plain again at your service i should be sorry if an acquaintance so pleasantly begun should in any way you must understand something at least of what i feel 