But of the
two triumphs, that of refuting a sophistical son and that of holding
on a while longer to a state of being which, with all abatements, he
enjoyed, Ralph deemed it no sin to hope the latter might be vouchsafed
to Mr. Touchett.
These were nice questions, but Isabel's arrival put a stop to his
puzzling over them. It even suggested there might be a compensation
for the intolerable ennui of surviving his genial sire. He wondered
whether he were harbouring "love" for this spontaneous young woman
from Albany; but he judged that on the whole he was not. After he
had known her for a week he quite made up his mind to this, and
every day he felt a little more sure. Lord Warburton had been right
about her; she was a really interesting little figure. Ralph
wondered how their neighbour had found it out so soon; and then he
said it was only another proof of his friend's high abilities, which
he had always greatly admired. If his cousin were to be nothing more
than an entertainment to him, Ralph was conscious she was an
entertainment of a high order. "A character like that," he said to
himself,- "a real little passionate force to see at play is the finest
thing in nature.
Pages:
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113