Lecount made two discoveries. She
found out, in the first place, that the servant (having enough to do in
attending to the coarser part of the domestic work) was in no position
to disclose the secrets of Miss Bygrave's wardrobe, which were known
only to the young lady herself and to her aunt. In the second place,
the housekeeper ascertained that the true reason of Mrs. Bygrave's rigid
seclusion was to be found in the simple fact that she was little better
than an idiot, and that her husband was probably ashamed of allowing her
to be seen in public. These apparently trivial discoveries enlightened
Mrs. Lecount on a very important point which had been previously
involved in doubt. She was now satisfied that the likeliest way to
obtaining a private investigation of Magdalen's wardrobe lay through
deluding the imbecile lady, and not through bribing the ignorant
servant.
Having reached that conclusion--pregnant with coming assaults on
the weakly-fortified discretion of poor Mrs. Wragge--the housekeeper
cautiously abstained from exhibiting herself any longer under an
inquisitive aspect. She changed the conversation to local topics, waited
until she was sure of leaving an excellent impression behind her, and
then took her leave.
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