Moths by Ouida — page 17: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

~~ MOTHS. — 13 rmilar word. ‘‘Scenes? Well, dear me, scenes are—scenes.. Anything, you know, that makes a fuss, that looks silly, that sete poople laughing; don’t you understand? Anything done be- fore people, you know: it is vulgar.” ‘* think I understand,” said Vere Herbert. She was avery - i. lovely girl, and despite her hight still looked a child. Her smalf head. was perfectly poised on a slender neck, and her face, quite colorless, with a complexion like the leaf of a white rose, had perfect features, straight, delicate, and noble; her fair hair was cut square over her brows and loosely knotted behind; she hada beautiful serious mouth, not so small as her mother’s, and serene eyes, gray as night, contemplative, yet wistful. She was calm and still. She had cried asif her heart would break, but she would have died rather than let her mother guess it, She had been what the French call refoulee sur elle-meme; and the process is chilling. ‘Have you all you want?” said Lady Dolly, casting a hasty glance round the room. ‘‘ You know I didn’t expect you, dear; - not in the least.” ‘*Surely my grandmother wrote?” ‘‘Your grandmother telegraphed that you had started; just like her! Of course I wished to have you here, and meant to do so, but not all in a moment. ‘‘The horrid old woman will be howling for the child back again in three weeks’ time,” thought Lady Dolly once more, ‘* But she has done it to spite me; the old cat!” . ‘‘Are you sorry to come to me, love?’ she said, sweetly, meanwhile drawing Vere down beside her on a couch. ‘‘T was very glad,” answered Vere. Lady Dolly discreetly omitted to notice the past tense. ‘‘ Ah, no doubt, very dear of you! It is three years since I saw you; for those few days at Bulmer hardly count. Bulmer is terribly dull, isn’t it?’ ‘*T suppose it is dull; I was notso. If grandmamma had not been so often——’ ‘*Cross as two sticks, you mean,” laughed Lady Dolly. Oh, If know her, my dear; the most disagreeable person that ever lived, The dear old duke was so nice and so handsome; but you hardly remember him, of course. Your grandmamma is a cat, dear—a cat, positively a cat! We will not talk about her. And howshe has dressed you! Itis quite wicked to dress a girl like that; it does her taste so much harm. You are very handsome, Vere.” ‘Yes? Jam like my father, they say.” “Very.” : Lady Dolly felt the mist over her eyes again, and this time knew it was not the prawns. She saw the sunny lawn in ‘ Devon, and the roses, and the little large-eyed child at her breast. Heavens! what a long way away all that time seemed! She gazed intently at Vere with a musing pathetic tenderness that moved the girl and made her tremble and glow, because at last this lovely mother of hers seemed to feel. Lady Dolly’s gaze grew graver and graver, more and more introspective, ‘¢ She is thinking of the past anc of my father,” thought the Ps _ ke) ws) comicbooks (E(0)