Mrs. Hunter was also as regular in her attendance as Mrs. Dwight, Miss
Lawton and Mrs. Price Ruyler, and asked fairly intelligent questions. The
others floated in and out, and one by one dropped from the class, until
toward the middle of the second winter none remained but Alexina, Aileen,
Mrs. Hunter and Helene Ruyler, who, like Aileen, found in the "frantic
interest" of the materialistic creed which antagonized every instinct in
them, a distraction from the excessive gambling which had threatened to
wreck their nerves, purses, and peace of mind. They confided this artlessly
to Mr. Kirkpatrick, who replied dryly that they were the best argument he
had in stock.
But if the major part of his fashionable class deserted him in due course
he had meanwhile seen the inside of their homes; and in each case, Alexina,
who divined his interest, arranged to have him shown over the house from
the kitchens and pantries straight up to the servants' quarters.
These he found unexpectedly comfortable and complete. In fact, they were so
much more modern and adorned than the little cottage in the Mission where
he lived with his mother that he longed for the immediate installation of a
system that would teach these workers what real work was. What enraged him
further was their "airs." They too obviously looked upon him as an alien
intruder, whereas their mistresses, until socialism bored them, were, for
the most part, as charmingly courteous as his one reliable friend, Mrs.
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