“It would not be a bad plan——” I began, and then I stopped, for I had spoken hastily, and how could I know if my words would be well received?
“Well,” she said, with a pretty air of impatience, “why do you stop? You have got something dreadfully sensible in your head, and I should like to hear it.”
“I am rather too quick with my words,” I answered, somewhat hesitating. “I was only thinking of what you said last night; you were condemning yourself very needlessly, as I think, and comparing your means of usefulness with Mrs. Morton’s.”
“With Violet’s many-sided duties. Well, I do not retract my words. I said I was always amusing myself; so I am; my bees are my playthings.”
“You could make them work for you if you chose,” I returned, quickly; “if one of these hives, for example, were devoted to some good purpose, if the money you got for the honey were given to one of those institutions in which your sister takes such interest.”
“Oh, what a nice idea,” she exclaimed, with a bright look. “I wonder what put that into your head. I was rather uncomfortable having all that money to spend on myself; I thought of giving some to Adelaide for Rolf, only I cannot get up an interest in that boy. I have more than I want, for one does not need so many dresses in the country, and nothing will induce me to go through a London season again. I tried it once,” with a merry laugh, “just to please Violet, but it nearly killed me, so I wrote to father to take me away. I should have liked the balls very well, only I got so dreadfully sleepy before they were over, and the rides in the Row were nice, if only they would have let me gallop, but I was nearly taken up for furious riding once when I could not get Bonnie to stop, and after that Alick lectured me, and I got sick of it.”
“You would not like your sister’s life, then?”
Gay shrugged her shoulders with a gesture of disgust.
“It is not life at all; it is a daily round of harassing duties. Look what it has done for Violet—robbed her of spirits and bloom; she will be an old woman before her time. The fun is very well, but there is too much of it. I pined for fresh air, for the garden, and the bees, and my other pets. I am afraid my partners thought me dreadfully rustic; I seemed to amuse them. I do not care for the young men in ball-rooms, they are so vapid, and, for all their politeness, they seemed to be laughing at one.”
I could not help smiling at this; it was very odd she should be so frank with me. She must have forgotten that I had no experience of ball-rooms, and had never danced except at school-parties, when the girls were allowed to bring their brothers.