The gentlemen's families in town did, indeed, afford a more refined and
correspondingly duller social circle, but naturally enough in the present
state of politics, there was very little thought of jollity in that
quarter.
And so, as I said, it was very dull for Desire, in fact terribly dull.
The only outside distraction all through the livelong day was the
occasional passage of a team in the road, and her mother, too, usually
occupied the chair at the only window commanding the road. And when
the aching dullness of the day was over, and the candles were lit for
the evening, and the little ones had been sent to bed, there was
nothing for her but to sit in the chimney corner, and look at the
blazing logs and brood and brood, till, at bedtime her father and
Jonathan came in from the store. Then her mother woke up, and there
was a little talk, but after that yawned the long dead night--sleep,
sleep, nothing but sleep for a heart and brain that cried out for
occupation.
Up to the time when the sudden coming of the winter put an abrupt end
to her meeting with Perez, she was merely playing, or in more modern
parlance, "flirting" with him, as a princess might flirt with a
servitor.
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