as the case. I had lived my thirty years without ever being
in love; indeed, I had from principle avoided the society of ladies,
that is, when they were of the flirtable or marriageable kind.

No sooner had the porter laid the articles mentioned on a corner seat,
the one farthest away from me, than their owner entered, and my
irritation vanished. It was a young lady under the ordinary size, and,
from what I could see of her, possessed of more than ordinary beauty.
Her skin was dark and clear, her eyes very dark, her mouth pleasant yet
decided, her chin square and determined. This latter feature would in
the eyes of many destroy her pretensions to beauty, but I, who liked
persons with a will of their own, admired the firm resoluteness the
feature indicated.

She took no notice of me, but quietly arranged her belongings as if she
were accustomed to take care of herself. She had only just sat down,
when she was followed by another lady, who appeared, from the sign of
recognition that passed between them, an acquaintance.

Evidently, however, the younger lady was not delighted at the advent of
the elder. A look of annoyance swept across her face, as if she could
have very comfortably excused her presence. I did not wonder at it. This
second comer was a woman of about fifty-five years of age. She had
yellow wrinkled skin, a square upright forehead, shaggy grey eyebrows,
beneath which, in two cavernous sockets, were two black beady-looking
eyes. Her mouth was large and coarse, and, to make that feature still
more objectionable, two large teeth, like two fangs, stuck out at a
considerable angle from her upper jaw and rested on the lower lip.
Altogether the face was repulsive. Added to this, she was tall and bony,
and would have passed anywhere for one of the witches of olden time.

"I have altered my mind, Gertrude, and am going with you." This was said
in a harsh, thick voice.

"I see you are here, Miss Staggles," said the younger lady very coolly.

"I did not intend coming at first, but your aunt, poor silly thing, said
you would not take your maid with you, and so I thought it would be a
sin for a young girl like you to travel alone to Yorkshire on a day like
this."

"Yorkshire?" I thought. "Is that old woman to be in this carriage with
me for five or six long hours? I'll get out."

I was too late; at that moment the guard's whistle blew, and the train
moved slowly out of the station. At all events, I had to remain