But Grace was one of those women formed under the kindly severe discipline of Puritan New England, to act not from blind impulse or instinct, but from high principle.  The habit of self-examination and self-inspection, for which the religious teaching of New England has been peculiar, produced a race of women who rose superior to those mere feminine caprices and impulses which often hurry very generous and kindly-natured persons into ungenerous and dishonorable conduct.  Grace had been trained, by a father and mother whose marriage union was an ideal of mutual love, honor, and respect, to feel that marriage was the holiest and most awful of obligations.  To her, the idea of a husband or a wife betraying each other’s weaknesses or faults by complaints to a third party seemed something sacrilegious; and she used all her womanly tact and skill to prevent any conversation that might lead to such a result.

“Lillie is entirely knocked up by the affair yesterday; she had a terrible headache this morning,” said John.

“Poor child!  She is a delicate little thing,” said Grace.

“She couldn’t have had any labor,” continued John, “for I saw to every thing and provided every thing myself; and Bridget and Rosa and all the girls entered into it with real spirit, and Lillie did the best she could, poor girl! but I could see all the time she was worrying about her new fizgigs and folderols in the house.  Hang it!  I wish they were all in the Red Sea!” burst out John, glad to find something to vent himself upon.  “If I had known that making the house over was going to be such a restraint on a fellow, I would never have done it.”

“Oh, well! never mind that now,” said Grace.  “Your house will get rubbed down by and by, and the new gloss taken off; and so will your wife, and you will all be cosey and easy as an old shoe.  Young mistresses, you see, have nerves all over their house at first.  They tremble at every dent in their furniture, and wink when you come near it, as if you were going to hit it a blow; but that wears off in time, and they learn to take it easy.”

John looked relieved; but after a minute broke out again:—­

“I say, Gracie, Lillie has gone and invited the Simpkinses and the Follingsbees here this fall.  Just think of it!”

“Well, I suppose you expect your wife to have the right of inviting her company,” said Grace.

“But, you know, Gracie, they are not at all our sort of folks,” said John.  “None of our set would ever think of visiting them, and it’ll seem so odd to see them here.  Follingsbee is a vulgar sharper, who has made his money out of our country by dishonest contracts during the war.  I don’t know much about his wife.  Lillie says she is her intimate friend.”

“Oh, well, John! we must get over it in the quietest way possible.  It wouldn’t be handsome not to make the agreeable to your wife’s company; and if you don’t like the quality of it, why, you are a good deal nearer to her than any one else can be,—­you can gradually detach her from them.”