The removal of such things as were to be brought from Walnut Tree Walk, and the housing of the new furniture, would take only a couple of days.  This was to be done immediately before the wedding; then Lydia and Mrs. Grail would live in the house whilst the husband and wife were away.

Egremont found that the large school-room would be ready sooner than he had anticipated.  When it was cleaned out, there was nothing to do save to fix shelves, a small counter, and two long tables.  For some time he had been making extensive purchases of books, for the most part from a secondhand dealer, who warehoused his volumes for him till the library should be prepared to receive them.  He had drawn up, too, a skeleton catalogue, but this could not be proceeded with before the books were in some sort of order upon the shelves.  He was nervously impatient to reach this stage.  Since his last visit to Eastbourne he had seen no friends in civilised London, and now that he had no longer lectures to write, his state of mind grew ever more unsatisfactory.  Loneliness, though to so great an extent self-imposed, weighed upon him intolerably.  He believed that he was going through the dreariest time of his life.

How often he thought with envy of the little parlour in Walnut Tree Walk!  To toil oneself weary through a long day in a candle factory, and then come back to the evening meal, with the certainty that a sweet young face would be there to meet one with its smile, sweet lips to give affectionate welcome—­that would be better than this life which he led.  He wished to go there again, but feared to do so without invitation.  The memory of his evening there made drawing-rooms distasteful to him.

He had a letter from Mrs. Ormonde, in which a brief mention was made of Thyrza’s visit.  He replied: 

’Why do you not tell me more of the impression made upon you by Miss Trent?  It was a favourable one, of course, as you kept her with you over the Sunday.  You do not mention whether Annabel saw her.  She is very fond of music; it would have been a kindness to ask Annabel to play to her.  But I have Miss Newthorpe’s promise that she and her father will come and see the library as soon as it is open; then at all events they will make the acquaintance of Mrs. Grail.

’She interests me very much, as you gather from my way of writing about her.  I hope she will come to think of me as a friend.  It will be delightful to watch her mind grow.  I am sure she has faculties of a very delicate kind; I believe she will soon be able to appreciate literature.  Has she not a strange personal charm, and is it not impossible to think of her becoming anything but a beautiful-natured woman?  You too, now that you know her, will continue to be her friend—­I earnestly hope so.  If she could be for a little time with you now and then, how it would help to develop the possibilities that are in her!’

To the letter of which this was part, Mrs. Ormonde quickly responded: