of public
exhibition of her powers, till she was in a slight degree better
acquainted with her ground; and she was glad to know, without being
directly told, what it was customary to do in these respects. But in
every other point of view, she had better, perhaps, have been reader
than listener. For, if she gained a lesson as to the routine to be
followed, she paid for it by receiving at the same time, a considerably
alarming impression of the general's ways of proceeding.

"Shall I read the newspaper this evening?" began Mrs. Melwyn, timidly.

"I don't care if you do," roughly.

Polite men, be it observed, _en passant_, do not at all make it a rule
to exercise that habit to their wives. The wife is a thing apart from
the rest of the world, out of the category of such proprieties. To be
rude to his wife is no impeachment of a man's gentleman-like manners at
all.

"Is there any thing worth reading in it?"

"I am sure I don't know what you will think worth reading. Shall I begin
with the leading article?"

"What is it all about?"

"I am sure I can't say."

"Can't you look?"

"The sugar question, I think."

"Well, what has the fool to say about that?"

"The speech of Lord **** last night upon the much discussed subject of
the sugar question, has no doubt been read and commented upon, in their
various ways, and according to their different impressions--shall we say
prejudices?--by our readers. The performance, it is upon all hands
agreed, was masterly, and, as far as eloquence is concerned, that the
accomplished statesman who uttered this remarkable speech did only
justice to..."

"Well--well--well--_well_," in a sneering tone--"I really do wonder how
long you could go on droning and dinning, and dinning and droning such
palpably empty editorial nonsense as that into a man's ears. Now, I
would be glad to ask you--merely to ask you, as a rational woman, Mrs.
Melwyn--what possible amusement or profit can be drawn from a long
exordium which says absolutely nothing--tells one absolutely nothing but
what every one knew before--stuff with which all editors of newspapers
seem to think it necessary to preface their remarks. What in the name
of--is the use of wasting your breath and my patience--can't you skip?
Are you a mere reading machine, madam?"

"Shall I pass on to the next subject?"

"No, that's not my meaning--if you could take a meaning. What I want is
only what every rational person expects when these con