She was two or three years older than Marie, was tall, and had been somewhat stately even as a girl.

She had had many cares, but her position had always been assured; as the wife of a powerful noble she had been accustomed to be treated with deference and respect, and although the troubles of the times and the loss of her husband had left their marks, she was still a fair and stately woman at the age of forty-three.

Marie, upon the other hand, had lived an untroubled life for the past twenty years.

She had married a man who was considered beneath her, but the match had been in every way a happy one.

Her husband was devoted to her, and the expression of her face showed that she was a thoroughly contented and happy woman.
"You are just what I fancied you would be, Marie, a quiet little home bird, living in your nest beyond the sea, and free from all the troubles and anxieties of our unhappy country.