Now, no long faces! What _I_ require is CHEERFUL obedience." A bland, autocratic martinet: smiling, inexorable! Poor, pale Ettie grew thinner and wanner under her law daily, while Maisie's temper, naturally docile, was being spoiled before one's eyes by persistent, needless thwarting.
As spring came on, however, I began to hope that things were really mending.

Le Geyt looked brighter; some of his own careless, happy-go-lucky self came back again at intervals.

He told me once, with a wistful sigh, that he thought of sending the children to school in the country--it would be better for them, he said, and would take a little work off dear Clara's shoulders; for never even to me was he disloyal to Clara.

I encouraged him in the idea.

He went on to say that the great difficulty in the way was...