rational desire and ability to do good to every one. Mary Carvel is
sometimes exaggerated in her ideas of charity, and John on rare
occasions--very rarely--used to be a little too much inclined to the
practice of economy; "near" was the term applied by the village people.
It was at first with him but the reminiscence of poorer years, when
economy was necessary, and forethought was an indispensable element in
his life; but the tendency has remained and sometimes shows itself. All
that can be traced of this quality in the daughter is a certain power of
keen discernment, which saves her from being cheated by the sham paupers
who abound in the neighborhood of Carvel Place, and from being led into
spoiling the school-children with too many feasts of tea, jam, and
cake.

It is not easy to be brief in describing Hermione Carvel, because in her
fair self she combines a great many qualities belonging to contradictory
persons, which one would suppose impossible to unite in one harmonious
whole; and yet Hermione is one of the most harmonious persons I ever
knew. Nothing about her ever offended my sense of fitness. I often used
to wonder how she managed to be loved equally by the different members
of the household, but there is no doubt of the fact that all the members
of her family not only love her, but excuse readily enough those of
their own bad qualities which they fancy they recognize in her; for,
indeed, nothing ever seems bad in Hermione, and I doubt greatly whether
there is not some touch of white magic in her nature that protects her
and shields her, so that bad things turn to good when they come near
her. If she likes the curious notions of her aunt, she certainly changes
them so that they become delicate fancies, and agree together with the
gentle charity she has from her mother and the sterling honesty she gets
from her father. John sometimes shrugs his shoulders at what he calls
his wife's extraordinary faith in human nature, and both he and Mary are
sometimes driven to the verge of distraction by Chrysophrasia's
perpetual moaning over civilization; but no one is ever out of temper
with Hermione, nor is Hermione ever impatient with any one of the three.
She is the peace-maker, the one whose sympathy never fails, whose
gentleness is never ruffled, and whose fair judgment is never at fault.

When John Carvel answered Hermione's question about Professor Cutter by
a simple affirmation to the effect that he was a very lear