no charm for him. He detected at once the domestic conspiracy of
which he was destined to become the victim. He often came up-stairs, at
night, into my bed-room; and while he was amusing himself by derisively
kicking about my simple clothes and simple toilette apparatus; while he
was laughing in his old careless way at my quiet habits and monotonous
life, used to slip in, parenthetically, all sorts of sarcasms about our
young lady guests. To him, their manners were horribly inanimate; their
innocence, hypocrisy of education. Pure complexions and regular features
were very well, he said, as far as they went; but when a girl could not
walk properly, when she shook hands with you with cold fingers, when
having good eyes she could not make a stimulating use of them, then it
was time to sentence the regular features and pure complexions to be
taken back forthwith to the nursery from which they came. For _his_
part, he missed the conversation of his witty Polish Countess, and
longed for another pancake-supper with his favourite _grisettes._

The failure of my father's last experiment with Ralph soon became
apparent. Watchful and experienced mothers began to suspect that my
brother's method of flirtation was dangerous, and his style of waltzing
improper. One or two ultra-cautious parents, alarmed by the laxity of
his manners and opinions, removed their daughters out of harm's way,
by shortening their visits. The rest were spared any such necessity. My
father suddenly discovered that Ralph was devoting himself rather too
significantly to a young married woman who was staying in the house. The
same day he had a long private interview with my brother. What passed
between them, I know not; but it must have been something serious.
Ralph came out of my father's private study, very pale and very
silent; ordered his luggage to be packed directly; and the next morning
departed, with his French valet, and his multifarious French goods and
chattels, for the continent.

Another interval passed; and then we had another short visit from him.
He was still unaltered. My father's temper suffered under this second
disappointment. He became more fretful and silent; more apt to take
offence than had been his wont. I particularly mention the change thus
produced in his disposition, because that change was destined, at no
very distant period, to act fatally upon me.

On this last occasion, also, there was another serious disagreement
between fat