It is quite a fuss to persuade her
to put them on, she is so nervous about them being lost! She always
insists on my locking them up in the safe again before I go to bed. Of
course I don't contradict her, but half the time I leave them on my
dressing-room table till next morning. Ha! ha! It is always best to
humour ladies, even when they are a trifle unreasonable."
It is one of Maitland's little foibles that he never can resist drawing
attention to the family diamonds (which are remarkably fine) by some
passing allusion of this sort.
Nothing of any interest happened during dinner. When it was at last
terminated we retired to the drawing-room, and listened with great
decorum to several pieces of music. Miss Latouche was pressed to perform
upon the harp, which she did with her usual melancholy grace. To-night
she was in a rich white robe, which enhanced the peculiarly dusky effect
of her olive skin and masses of dark hair. Her face was very pale; and,
to my surprise, shortly after playing she complained of a bad headache
and went off to bed. I hardly knew what to think. Had her courage failed
her at the last, and, when it came to the point, did she shrink from
braving the opinion of the world which she affected so thoroughly to
despise?
"So, after all her boasting, she is no bolder than the rest of us!" I
thought, with intense relief, as I wandered across the hall to join the
other men in the smoking-room.
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