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130 Mrs. Strachan in the drawing-room. Up, then, we went and into the drawing-room, where we found three womenkind, one middle-aged and two young, to whom I was presented: Mrs. and the two Miss Strachans. Mrs. Strachan struck me as an ordinary good-looking middle-aged female, and her two daughters as two ordinary pretty young females, clothed with decorous fashionableness and speaking platitudes of the most irreproachable character: or shortly, as three 'ladies.' And, this seeming so, it followed that not even a certain demureness in Miss Connie's face and manner, not unsuggestive of experience in the art of flirting, added to what I subsequently was told was a 'grave sweetness' in Miss Isabel, were enough to entice me out of my shell. It was far more amusing, as it seemed to me, to sit and listen to their silly prattle, which, it was not hard to see, they took for delightful if not brilliant conversation, than to enter into the splashing shallows myself; for, if I had been a talker, I must inevitably have missed over half of the nature-strokes which as a listener I caught. The amusement of hearing Mrs. Strachan and her daughters talk about 'Culture,' while the Professor sat drinking his tea and occasionally throwing in a gibe, which they either did not hear or quite misunderstood, seemed to give me something of an insight into the meaning of the word Comedy. Finally, towards the end of an almost irrepressible fit of amusement, I rose and said good-bye to them, and went away down the stairs and out into the street, hot and a little exhausted. If I had stayed much longer, I thought, I must have shown some sign that perhaps might have offended them, and that would have been to be regretted. And then I was led to think of my last society experiences of three, it seemed years, but it was only weeks ago, till I came to Dunraven Place, when it occurred to me to write to Mother McCarthy about my things at Glastonbury.

Accordingly I wrote: took out my letter and posted it; and went for a walk into the Park, Hyde Park, till seven, when it was time for supper. And after supper came a reading of Esmond, highest Thackerayan