Page:Maud Howe - A Newport Aquarelle.djvu/81

 for anything, not even for society, in which she was a prominent but not a popular figure.

A great belle she undoubtedly was, which did not make the women particularly fond of her. Men all admired her, and elbowed and fought for a place at her side in the ball-room. A good many of them were in love with her, and yet few liked her. She was admirable, she was lovable, but she was distinctly unlikable.

A certain fondness for the truth made her speak it at all times, even when it carried something of a sting with it.

Her intellect was of a high order enough to show her the insipidity of the men and women among whom her lot was cast. It was not strong enough to force her to leave the circle in which she was born, and strive for a footing in the world of thought, action, art, or literature.

She laughed at the Philistines, and yet avowed herself to be one of them.