‘Yet there have been heroines,’ said Sidonia.
‘The Queen of Sheba,’ said the Princess, smiling.
‘A favourite of mine,’ said Sidonia.
‘And why was she a favourite of yours?’ rather eagerly inquired Lucretia.
‘Because she thought deeply, talked finely, and moved gracefully.’
‘And yet might be a very unfeeling dame at the same time,’ said the Princess.
‘I never thought of that,’ said Sidonia.
‘The heart, apparently, does not reckon in your philosophy.’
‘What we call the heart,’ said Sidonia, ‘is a nervous sensation, like shyness, which gradually disappears in society. It is fervent in the nursery, strong in the domestic circle, tumultuous at school. The affections are the children of ignorance; when the horizon of our experience expands, and models multiply, love and admiration imperceptibly vanish.’
‘I fear the horizon of your experience has very greatly expanded. With your opinions, what charm can there be in life?’