"She must have been well educated."
"I should think so. She was a college graduate…. When I was fifteen I took the examinations for Barnard—knowing, of course, that I couldn't go—and passed in everything…. If mother could have spared me I could have had a scholarship."
"That was hard luck, wasn't it, dear?"
"N-no. I had mother—as long as she lived. After she died I had what she had given me—and she had the education of a cultivated woman; she was a lover of the best in literature and in art, a woman gently bred, familiar with sorrow and privation."
"If you choose," said Rita, "you are equipped for a governess—or a lady's companion—or a secretary—"
"I suppose I am. Before I signed with Schindler I advertised, offering myself as a teacher. How many replies do you suppose I received?"
"How many?"
"Not one."
Rita sighed. "I suppose you couldn't afford to go on advertising."
"No, and I couldn't afford to wait…. Mother's burial took all the little income. I was glad enough when Schindler signed me…. But a girl can't remain long with Schindler."