Page:Romance & Reality 2.pdf/38

36 but people may be frightened into their wits as well as out of them; and the necessity for exertion usually brings with it the power—and really Lord Etheringhame succeeded wonderfully well. Conversation became quite animated; the beauty of the scenery led to painting; painting to poetry. It was singular how well they agreed. It was very true Adelaide had read little more than the title-page of the works they talked about; but where a person is predetermined to acquiesce comparative criticism is particularly easy. Perhaps his constitutional timidity had done more towards banishing Etheringhame from society than his melancholy; perhaps that shame attendant on change of opinion, however justifiable, (we hate to contradict ourselves, it is so rude,) also supported the claims of a seclusion which had long been somewhat wearisome: but here time had not been given him for thick-coming fancies—and he found himself talking, nay, laughing, with a very lovely creature, and secretly asking himself, where was the embarrassment of it? But neither showers nor any other means of human felicity, ever last. The clouds broke away, and the sun shone most provokingly in at the windows—a fact instantly stated by Lord