The Evil Genius: A Domestic Story — page 40: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

THE EVIL GENIUS. 23 terfield! how dare you beg for employment in a newspaper with- out asking my leave?’ ‘‘T only waited to tell you what I had done, till I knew whether my advertisement would be answered or not.” She spoke as calmly as before; still submitting to the insolent authority of the schoolmistress with a steady fortitude very re- markable in any girl—and especially in a girl whose face revealed asensitive nature. Linley approached her, and said his few kind words before Miss Wigger could assert herself for the third time. ‘¢T am afraid I have taken a liberty in answering you person- ally, when I ought to have answered by letter. My only excuse is that I have no time to arrange for an interview, in London, by correspondence. [I live in Scotland, and I am obliged to re- turn by the mail to-night.” A He paused. She was looking at him. Did she understand im? She understood him only too well. For the first time, poor soul, in the miserable years of her school life, she saw eyes that rested on her with the sympathy that is too truly felt to be ut- tered in words. The admirable resignation which had learned its first hard lesson under her mother’s neglect—which had en- dured, in after years, the daily persecution that heartless com- panionship so well knows how to inflict—failed to sustain her, when one kind look from astranger poured its balm into the girl’s sore heart. Her head sank; her wasted figure trembled; a few tears dropped slowly on the bosom of her shabby dress. She tried, desperately tried, to control herself. ‘* I beg your par- don, sir,” was all she could say: ‘‘ J am not very well.” Miss Wigger tapped her on the shoulder and pointed to the door. ‘* Are you wel] enough to see your way out?’ she asked. Linley turned on the wretch with a mind divided between wonder and disgust. ‘*Good God! what has she done to deserve being treated in that way?” he asked. Miss Wigger’s mouth widened; Miss Wigger’s forehead devel- oped new wrinkles. To own it plainly, the schoolmistress smiled. When it is of serious importance to @ man to become ac- quainted with a woman’s true nature—say, when he contem- plates marriage—his one poor chance of arriving at a right con- clusion is to find himself provoked by exasperating circumstances, and to fly into a passion. If the lady flies into a passion on her side, he may rely on it that her faults are more than balanced by her good gualities. If, on the other hand, she exhibits the most admirable self-control, and sets him an example which ought to make him ashamed of himself, he has seen a bad sign, and he will do well to remember it. Miss Wigger’s self-control put Herbert Linley in the wrong, before she took the trouble of noticing what he had said. ‘‘ If you were not out of temper,” she replied, ‘tI "night have told you that I don’t allow my house to be made an office for the engagement of governesses. As it is, 1 merely remind you that your carriage is at the door.” CORMICLO® S (E@) im