thought of it walking about his room, and looking out at the bright
harvest moon for with him to be in bed was to be asleep. He sat himself
down, and he walked about, and he leaned out of the window into the
cool night air; and he made some comparisons in his mind, and certain
calculations; and he thought of his present home, and of his sister,
and of his future prospects as they were concerned with the old place
at which he was now staying; and he portrayed to himself, in his mind,
Clara's head and face and figure and feet and he resolved that she
should be his wife. He had never seen a girl who seemed to suit him so
well. Though he had only been with her for a day, he swore to himself
that he knew he could love her. Nay he swore to himself that he did
love her. Then when he had quite made up his mind, he tumbled into his
bed and was asleep in five minutes.

Miss Amedroz was a handsome young woman, tall, well-made, active, and
full of health. She carried herself as though she thought her limbs
were made for use, and not simply for ease upon a sofa. Her head and
neck stood well upon her shoulders, and her waist showed none of those
waspish proportions of which ladies used to be more proud than I
believe them to be now, in their more advanced state of knowledge and
taste. There was much about her in which she was like her cousin, as
though the blood they had in common between them had given to both the
same proportions and the same comeliness. Her hair was of a dark brown
colour, as was his. Her eyes were somewhat darker than his, and perhaps
not so full of constant movement; but they were equally bright, and
possessed that quick power of expressing tenderness which belonged to
them. Her nose was more finely cut, as was also her chin, and the oval
of her face; but she had the same large expressive mouth, and the same
perfection of ivory-white teeth. As has been said before, Clara
Amedroz, who was now nearly twenty-six years of age, was not a