368 Life of Count Rumford. 



truth, I view my life as pretty much ended, in all that is 

 worth possessing, when I quitted my father at Bromp- 

 ton. Nor was his very different after quitting Munich, 

 particularly after his unfortunate marriage, for cer- 

 tainly marriages like his cannot be termed otherwise 

 than unfortunate." 



The Countess to give the young lady the title that 

 properly came to her found her situation in society 

 somewhat embarrassing, even though she was a school 

 pupil. She says she received much attention, not only 

 from her fellow-pupils, but from many prominent peo- 

 ple. She was looked to as an oracle, and expected to 

 be very communicative and interesting as to the scenes 

 and experiences of her foreign life. While abroad she 

 had been disciplined to deferential silence and atten- 

 tion; but the tables were now turned upon her, and she 

 was expected to contribute to the entertainment of others. 

 She tried to perfect herself in music, though "thumping 

 and rattling the keys of the piano," was evidently not 

 music to her heart. She made up her mind that this, 

 being the sixth or the seventh, should be the last, of 

 her schools, as she painfully reminded herself that she 

 had been set to the tasks of pupilage in every place of 

 her residence. She resolved to correct her faults and 

 to increase her stock of knowledge. One of these faults 

 was a dislike of her needle. She had actually given 

 away a pretty dress to avoid the trouble of embroider- 

 ing' it. She resolved to retrieve her character in that 

 respect, and in a short time wrought and sent to her 

 father an embroidered waistcoat. She also drew " a pic- 

 ture of a shepherd boy, about half a yard high, with a 

 very beautiful expression of countenance." Remember- 

 ing her former heart-trials, the Countess adds : 



