too many weird stories for me to dread that. Besides, you have
Second Sight--latent, at all events. However, there won't be any
more ghosts, or about ghosts, in this letter. I want to tell you all
about our new home. I am so glad you are coming out so soon; I am
beginning to feel so lonesome--I walk about sometimes aimlessly, and
find my thoughts drifting in such an odd way. If I didn't know
better, I might begin to think I was in love! There is no one here
to be in love with; so make your mind easy, Aunt Janet. Not that you
would be unhappy, I know, dear, if I DID fall in love. I suppose I
must marry some day. It is a duty now, I know, when there is such an
estate as Uncle Roger has left me. And I know this: I shall never
marry any woman unless I love her. And I am right sure that if I do
love her you will love her, too, Aunt Janet! Won't you, dear? It
wouldn't be half a delight if you didn't. It won't if you don't.
There, now!

But before I begin to describe Vissarion I shall throw a sop to you
as a chatelaine; that may give you patience to read the rest. The
Castle needs a lot of things to make it comfortable--as you would
consider it. In fact, it is absolutely destitute of everything of a
domestic nature. Uncle Roger had it vetted on the defence side, and
so far it could stand a siege. But it couldn't cook a dinner or go
through a spring-cleaning! As you know, I am not much up in domestic
matters, and so I cannot give you details; but you may take it that
it wants everything. I don't mean furniture, or silver, or even
gold-plate, or works of art, for it is full of the most magnificent
old things that you can imagine. I think Uncle Roger must have been
a collector, and gathered a lot of good things in all sorts of
places, stored them for years, and then sent them here. But as to
glass, china, delft, all sorts of crockery, linen, household