"
And Janet had plunged into a regular conversation about exhibitions,
pictures, artists, concerts, lectures, &c., before her mother came
back, talking with all the eagerness of an exile about her native
country. As a governess in her school-room, Miss Ogilvie had had
little more than a key-hole view of all these things; but then what
she had seen and heard had been chiefly through the Actons, and thus
coincided with Janet's own side of the world, and they were in full
discussion when Caroline came back.
"There, I've disposed of the butcher and baker!" she said. "Now we
can be comfortable again."
Mary expected Janet to repair to her own lessons, or to listen to
those scales which Babie might be heard from a distance playing; but
she only appealed to her mother about some picture of last year, and
sat down to her drawing, while the conversation on pictures and books
continued in animated style. So far from sending her away, Mary
fancied that Carey was rather glad to keep to surface matters, and to
be prevented from another outbreak of feeling.
The next interruption was from the children, each armed with a pile
of open books on the top of a slate. Carey begged Mary to wait, and
went outside the window with them, sitting down under a tree whence
the murmured sounds of repetition could be heard, lasting about
twenty minutes between the two, and then she returned, the little
ones jumping on each side of her, Armine begging that Miss Ogilvie
would come and see the museum, and Barbara saying that Jock wanted to
help to show it off.
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