Page:The Semi-attached Couple.djvu/68

 "That must be encouraging to them," said Mr. Douglas, "and produce a great increase of attachment to yourself."

"Oh! my dear, that is one of the subjects you do not understand, and so you may as well not talk about it. If you would let me send away that old Thomas of yours, the house would go on much better. Mrs. Birkett, and Mrs. Dashwood, and everybody says I manage servants better than anybody; and I know I do, by never letting them have their own way on any one point; and as for attachment, you might as well expect it from this table."

"I should think so, under the circumstances," said Mr. Douglas; "but whatever you do, do not interfere with Thomas."

A silence followed while Mrs. Douglas was thinking what a clever manager she was, and how well she contrived to make her servants hate her; and then her thoughts recurred to the Eskdales.

"So Amelia is gone; I suppose to some gay party at a country-house. I must say, that after all the fuss that has been made about those girls, it is not much to their credit that they leave their parents quite to themselves in their old age, while they are flying about in search of amusement. I will answer for it Amelia went off because she thought it dull."

"Are you speaking of the Trevors?" said Mr. Douglas, who was reading the paper. "I see his father is dead, and they have been sent for into Sussex. Trevor is now Lord Walden."

"Oh!" said Mrs. Douglas; and there was another long silence.

"Well," she began again, "I do pity Lord Eskdale: I do not see what he is to do, after being accustomed to the society of his daughters, and used to having one of them always with him. Those die-away, languid airs of Lady Eskdale's must be rather trying. To be sure, she is not so