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1This brought on a dialogue of civilities between the other two; but Catherine heard neither the particulars nor the
2result. Her companion's discourse now sunk from its hitherto animated pitch to nothing more than a short decisive
3sentence of praise or condemnation on the face of every woman they met; and Catherine, after listening and agreeing as
4long as she could, with all the civility and deference of the youthful female mind, fearful of hazarding an opinion of
5its own in opposition to that of a self-assured man, especially where the beauty of her own sex is concerned, ventured
6at length to vary the subject by a question which had been long uppermost in her thoughts; it was, "Have you ever read
7Udolpho, Mr. Thorpe?" "Udolpho! oh, Lord! not I; I never read novels; I have something else to do." Catherine, humbled
8and ashamed, was going to apologize for her question, but he prevented her by saying, "Novels are all so full of
9nonsense and stuff; there has not been a tolerably decent one come out since Tom Jones, except The Monk; I read that
10t'other day; but as for all the others, they are the stupidest things in creation." "I think you must like Udolpho, if
11you were to read it; it is so very interesting." "Not I, faith! no, if I read any, it shall be Mrs. Radcliffe's; her
12novels are amusing enough; they are worth reading; some fun and nature in them." "Udolpho was written by Mrs.
13Radcliffe," said Catherine, with some hesitation, from the fear of mortifying him. "No, sure; was it? Aye, I remember,
14so it was; I was thinking of that other stupid book, written by that woman they make such a fuss about, she who married
15the French emigrant." "I suppose you mean Camilla?" "Yes, that's the book; such unnatural stuff! an old man playing at
16see-saw, I took up the first volume once and looked it over, but I soon found it would not do; indeed I guessed what
17sort of stuff it must be before I saw it: as soon as I heard she had married an emigrant, I was sure I should never be
18able to get through it." "I have never read it." "You had no loss, I assure you; it is the horridest nonsense you can
19imagine; there is nothing in the world in it but an old man's playing at see-saw and learning Latin; upon my soul there
20is not." This critique, the justness of which was unfortunately lost on poor Catherine, brought them to the door of Mrs.
21Thorpe's lodgings, and the feelings of the discerning and unprejudiced reader of Camilla gave way to the feelings of the
22dutiful and affectionate son, as they met Mrs. Thorpe, who had descried them from above, in the passage. "Ah, Mother!
23How do you do?" said he, giving her a hearty shake of the hand. "Where did you get that quiz of a hat? It makes you look
24like an old witch. Here is Morland and I come to stay a few days with you, so you must look out for a couple of good
25beds somewhere near." And this address seemed to satisfy all the fondest wishes of the mother's heart, for she received
26him with the most delighted and exulting affection. On his two younger sisters he then bestowed an equal portion of his
27fraternal tenderness, for he asked each of them how they did, and observed that they both looked very ugly. These
28manners did not please Catherine; but he was James's friend and Isabella's brother; and her judgment was further bought
29off by Isabella's assuring her, when they withdrew to see the new hat, that John thought her the most charming girl in
30the world, and by John's engaging her before they parted to dance with him that evening. Had she been older or vainer,
31such attacks might have done little; but, where youth and diffidence are united, it requires uncommon steadiness of
32reason to resist the attraction of being called the most charming girl in the world, and of being so very early engaged
33as a partner; and the consequence was that, when the two Morlands, after sitting an hour with the Thorpes, set off to
34walk together to Mr. Allen's, and James, as the door was closed on them, said, "Well, Catherine, how do you like my
35friend Thorpe?" instead of answering, as she probably would have done, had there been no friendship and no flattery in
36the case, "I do not like him at all," she directly replied, "I like him very much; he seems very agreeable." "He is as
37good-natured a fellow as ever lived; a little of a rattle; but that will recommend him to your sex, I believe: and how
38do you like the rest of the family?" "Very, very much indeed: Isabella particularly." "I am very glad to hear you say
39so; she is just the kind of young woman I could wish to see you attached to; she has so much good sense, and is so
40thoroughly unaffected and amiable; I always wanted you to know her; and she seems very fond of you. She said the highest
41things in your praise that could possibly be; and the praise of such a girl as Miss Thorpe even you, Catherine," taking
42her hand with affection, "may be proud of." "Indeed I am," she replied; "I love her exceedingly, and am delighted to
43find that you like her too. You hardly mentioned anything of her when you wrote to me after your visit there." "Because
44I thought I should soon see you myself. I hope you will be a great deal together while you are in Bath. She is a most
45amiable girl; such a superior understanding! how fond all the family are of her; she is evidently the general favourite;
46and how much she must be admired in such a place as this--is not she?" "Yes, very much indeed, I fancy; Mr. Allen thinks
47her the prettiest girl in Bath." "I dare say he does; and I do not know any man who is a better judge of beauty than Mr.
48Allen. I need not ask you whether you are happy here, my dear Catherine; with such a companion and friend as Isabella
49Thorpe, it would be impossible for you to be otherwise; and the Allens, I am sure, are very kind to you?" "Yes, very
50kind; I never was so happy before; and now you are come it will be more delightful than ever; how good it is of you to
51come so far on purpose to see me." James accepted this tribute of gratitude, and qualified his conscience for accepting
52it too, by saying with perfect sincerity, "Indeed, Catherine, I love you dearly." Inquiries and communications
53concerning brothers and sisters, the situation of some, the growth of the rest, and other family matters now passed
54between them, and continued, with only one small digression on James's part, in praise of Miss Thorpe, till they reached
55Pulteney Street, where he was welcomed with great kindness by Mr. and Mrs. Allen, invited by the former to dine with
56them, and summoned by the latter to guess the price and weigh the merits of a new muff and tippet. A pre-engagement in
57Edgar's Buildings prevented his accepting the invitation of one friend, and obliged him to hurry away as soon as he had
58satisfied the demands of the other. The time of the two parties uniting in the Octagon Room being correctly adjusted,
59Catherine was then left to the luxury of a raised, restless, and frightened imagination over the pages of Udolpho, lost
60from all worldly concerns of dressing and dinner, incapable of soothing Mrs. Allen's fears on the delay of an expected
61dressmaker, and having only one minute in sixty to bestow even on the reflection of her own felicity, in being already
62engaged for the evening. CHAPTER 8 In spite of Udolpho and the dressmaker, however, the party from Pulteney Street
63reached the Upper Rooms in very good time. The Thorpes and James Morland were there only two minutes before them; and
64Isabella having gone through the usual ceremonial of meeting her friend with the most smiling and affectionate haste, of
65admiring the set of her gown, and envying the curl of her hair, they followed their chaperons, arm in arm, into the
66ballroom, whispering to each other whenever a thought occurred, and supplying the place of many ideas by a squeeze of
67the hand or a smile of affection.
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