thought if I had listened to my sister Lucy that day, what a different life
I might have led!

'Well, I must go on; I'm coming to the saddest part of my story, and I had
better get over it as quickly as I can.

'As I got older, I took to reading novels. Our house was full of them, for
my mother spent her days in devouring them. I read them and read them till
I lived in them, and was never happy unless I was fancying myself one of
the heroines of whom I read. My own life seemed dull and monotonous; I
wanted to see more of the world, and to have something romantic happen to
me. Oh, Rosalie, I got so restless and discontented! I used to wake in the
night, and wonder what _my_ fortunes would be; and then I used to
light the candle, and go on with the exciting novel I had been reading the
night before. Often I used to read half the night, for I could not sleep
again till I knew the end of the story. I quite left off saying my prayers,
for I could not think of anything of that sort when I was in the middle of
a novel.

'It was just about this time that I became acquainted with a family of the
name of Roehunter. They were rich people, friends of my mother. Miss
Georgina and Miss Laura Roehunter were very fast, dashing girls. They took
a great fancy to me, and we were always together. They were passionately
fond of the theatre, and they took me to it night after night.

'I could think of nothing else, Rosalie. I dreamt of it every night. It
took even more hold of me than the novels had done for it seemed to me like
a _living_ novel. I admired the scenery, I admired the actors, I
admired everything that I saw. I thought if I was only on the stage I
should be perfectly happy. There was nothing in the world that I wanted so