I am only a woman without aim in life. I am
only to float along between flowery banks, until somebody fishes me
out, I suppose!"
"I am sure, were I you, I could well float on until the right man
came; and you, Julia, it is your own fault if you do not marry for
love. You will not be obliged to consult anything else."
"And you?" said Julia, laughing.
"I? oh! I am dependent on my brother, you know."
"Yes, and there comes in the hardship; were you a man, you could go
out and make and choose. Now, a daughter remains where her father and
mother leave her. The sons may rise, the daughters stay below, and if
sought for, it is usually in the same channels in which the parents
move, and that is the hardship of those who, unlike you, are on a
lower plane, or who, like you, have no father and mother to sustain
them in their proper place. If you could win wealth, you would only
marry for love; and I am sure you will do so now."
"A woman who wins fortune usually loses the capacity to win love, I
fear," said Flora.
"And the woman who wins nothing deserves nothing," said Julia. "I am
a little like my mother, I presume; but who would win you, and how, I
wonder?"
"Oh," answered Flora, "I suppose the man who really and truly loved
me. I would like to have him come, as the breeze comes, with the odor
of flowers, as the spring comes, with music and song, with all sweet
and gentle influences, with beauty and grace; but he must not be
effeminate.
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