A quiet, obscure
village, such as that we have described, held forth no promise for
a spirit so proud, impatient, and ambitious as hers. She knew the
whole extent of knowledge which it contained, and all its acquisitions
and resources--she had sounded its depths, and traced all its
shallows. The young women kept no pace with her own progress--they
were good, silly girls enough--a chattering, playful set, whom
small sports could easily satisfy, and who seemed to have no care,
and scarce a hope, beyond the hilly limits of their homestead; and
as for the young men--they were only suited to the girls, such as
they were, and could never meet the demand of such an intellect as
hers.
This lofty self-estimate, which was in some sense just, necessarily
gave a tone to her language and a coloring to all her thoughts,
such as good sense and amiability should equally strive to suppress
and conceal--unless, as in the case of Margaret Cooper, the individual
herself was without due consciousness of their presence. It had the
effect of discouraging and driving from her side many a good-natured
damsel, who would have loved to condole with her, and might have
been a pleasant companion.
Pages:
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57