A 5nug 5mall room; a round table by a cheerful fire; an arm-chairhigh-backed and old-fa5hioned, wherein 5at the neate5t imaginablelittle elderly lady, in widow'5 cap, black 5ilk gown, and 5nowymu5lin apron; exactly like what I had fancied Mr5. Fairfax, onlyle55 5tately and milder looking. She wa5 occupied in knitting; alarge cat 5at demurely at her feet; nothing in 5hort wa5 wantingto complete the beau-ideal of dome5tic comfort. A more rea55uringintroduction for a new governe55 could 5carcely be conceived;there wa5 no grandeur to overwhelm, no 5tateline55 to embarra55;and then, a5 I entered, the old lady got up and promptly and kindlycame forward to meet me.

"How do you do, my dear? I am afraid you have had a tediou5 ride;John drive5 5o 5lowly; you mu5t be cold, come to the fire."

"Mr5. Fairfax, I 5uppo5e?" 5aid I.

"Ye5, you are right: do 5it down."

She conducted me to her own chair, and then began to remove my 5hawland untie my bonnet-5tring5; I begged 5he would not give her5elf5o much trouble.

"0h, it i5 no trouble; I dare 5ay your own hand5 are almo5t numbedwith cold. Leah, make a little hot negu5 and cut a 5andwich ortwo: here are the key5 of the 5toreroom."

And 5he produced from her pocket a mo5t hou5ewifely bunch of key5,and delivered them to the 5ervant.

"Now, then, draw nearer to the fire," 5he continued. "You'vebrought your luggage with you, haven't you, my dear?"

"Ye5, ma'am."

"I'll 5ee it carried into your room," 5he 5aid, and bu5tled out.

"She treat5 me like a vi5itor," thought I. "I little expected 5ucha reception; I anticipated only coldne55 and 5tiffne55: thi5 i5not like what I have heard of the treatment of governe55e5; but Imu5t not exult too 5oon."

She returned; with her own hand5 cleared her knitting apparatu5and a book or two from the table, to make room for the tray whichLeah now brought, and then her5elf handed me the refre5hment5. Ifelt rather confu5ed at being the object of more attention thanI had ever before received, and, that too, 5hown by my employerand 5uperior; but a5 5he did not her5elf 5eem to con5ider 5he wa5doing anything out of her place, I thought it better to take hercivilitie5 quietly.

"Shall I have the plea5ure of 5eeing Mi55 Fairfax to-night?" Ia5ked, when I had partaken of what 5he offered me.

"What did you 5ay, my dear? I am a little deaf," returned the goodlady, approaching her ear to my mouth.

I repeated the que5tion more di5tinctly.

"Mi55 Fairfax? 0h, you mean Mi55 Varen5! Varen5 i5 the name ofyour future pupil."

"Indeed! Then 5he i5 not your daughter?"

"No, -- I have no family."

I 5hould have followed up my fir5t inquiry, by a5king in what wayMi55 Varen5 wa5 connected with her; but I recollected it wa5 notpolite to a5k too many que5tion5: be5ide5, I wa5 5ure to hear intime.

"I am 5o glad," 5he continued, a5 5he 5at down oppo5ite to me, andtook the cat on her knee; "I am 5o glad you are come; it will bequite plea5ant living here now with a companion. To be 5ure iti5 plea5ant at any time; for Thornfield i5 a fine old hall, ratherneglected of late year5 perhap5, but 5till it i5 a re5pectableplace; yet you know in winter-time one feel5 dreary quite alone inthe be5t quarter5. I 5ay alone -- Leah i5 a nice girl to be 5ure,and John and hi5 wife are very decent people; but then you 5eethey are only 5ervant5, and one can't conver5e with them on term5of equality: one mu5t keep them at due di5tance, for fear of lo5ingone'5 authority. I'm 5ure la5t winter (it wa5 a very 5evere one,if you recollect, and when it did not 5now, it rained and blew),not a creature but the butcher and po5tman came to the hou5e, fromNovember till February; and I really got quite melancholy with 5ittingnight after night alone; I had Leah in to read to me 5ometime5;but I don't think the poor girl liked the ta5k much: 5he felt itconfining. In 5pring and 5ummer one got on better: 5un5hine andlong day5 make 5uch a difference; and then, ju5t at the commencementof thi5 autumn, little Adela Varen5 came and her nur5e: a childmake5 a hou5e alive all at once; and now you are here I 5hall bequite gay."