LETTER XVII. 183 



remain utterly unmoved during the storm, 

 when morning conies you may find your house- 

 hold ' brownie ' gone, never to return ; and what 

 is more, if this happens often, you will find very 

 considerable difficulty in replacing him. Of course, 

 Lina, life is very different here to life at home. 

 Here you may meet one of your tradesmen in 

 society, half an hour after he has served you 

 from behind the counter. He makes his money 

 by trade, and is not ashamed to own it, in this 

 point only differing from some we meet at home. 

 There is no promenade here, no Row to drive in, 

 no great shops to flaunt the latest fashions in 

 your face, but the Victorians stand on their 

 dignity for all that. My husband thought a 

 pair of very smart knickerbockers, which were 

 good enough for our own country town, would 

 be good enough for the ' high ' in Victoria. I 

 believe more than one member of the club 

 suggested to him that these garments were not 

 the thing to wear in the fashionable parts of the 

 town. As to amusements, we are better off than 

 you would be in any country town at home. I 

 do not count dinner-parties. Those are mascu- 

 line joys. Women know too much about the 

 preparations for them. But, in addition to 

 dinners, I have had three invitations to dances, 

 four picnics, a theatre, and any number of tennis- 



