"Well, that occurred to me too--afterwards, when it was too late to do
anything but repent. At the time, I own, I thought of nothing but the
success of the experiment as an example and proof of our will-power."

"You considered one side of the subject only, as per usual, when you
are eager and interested," I softly insinuated.

She frowned at me thoughtfully; then, after a pause, she resumed: "Ah,
yes! You may be sure there is a great deal of good motive power in
women, but most of it is lost for want of knowledge and means to apply
it. It works like the sails of a windmill not attached to the
machinery, which whirl round and round with incredible velocity and
every evidence of strength, but serve no better purpose than to show
which way the wind blows."

This question of the position of women in our own day occupied her a
good deal.

"The women of my time," she said to me once, "are in an unsettled
state, it may be a state of transition. Much that made life worth
having has lost its charm for them. The old interests pall upon them.
Occupations that used to be the great business of their lives are now
thought trivial, and are left to children and to servants. Principles
accepted since the beginning of time have been called in question.
Weariness and distrust have taken the place of peace and content, and
doubt and dissatisfaction are the order of the day. Women want
something; they are determined to have it, too; and doubtless they
would get it if only they knew what it is that they want. They are
struggling to arrive at something, but opinions differ widely as to
what that something ought to be; and the result is that they have