I don't mean to say, my dear, that
woman holloa any louder than men; on the contrary, they bear pain
a good deal better, but she was an exception. She was twelve years
younger then, and used to dress a good deal more than she does
now. That cloak and bonnet are meant to convey to the rest of the
passengers the fact that there is no occasion whatever for a person
of her importance to attend to such petty matters as dress.
"She never mentions her husband's name without saying, 'My husband,
the Resident,' but for all that she is a kind hearted woman--a
very kind hearted woman. I pulled a child of hers through who was
down with fever at Bhurtpore; he had a very close shave of it, and
she has never forgotten it. She greeted me when she came on board
almost with tears in her eyes at the thought of that time. I told
her I had a young lady under my charge, and she said that she would
be very pleased to do anything she could for you. She is a stanch
friend is Mrs. Resident, and you will find her useful before you
get to the end of the voyage."
The lady received Isobel with genuine kindness, and took her very
much under her wing during the voyage, and Isobel received no small
advantage from her advice and protection.
Her own good sense, however, and the earnest life she had led
at school and with her brother at home, would have sufficed her
even without this guardianship and that of the Doctor. There was
a straightforward frankness about her that kept men from talking
nonsense to her.
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