"It is nine o"clock: what are you about，Miss Eyre，to let Adele sit up so long? Take her to bed!"

Adele went to kiss him before quitting the room: he endured the caress，but scarcely seemed to relish it more than pilot would have done，nor so much.

"I wish you all good-night，now," said he，making a movement of the hand towards the door，in token that he was tired of our pany，and wished to dismiss us. Mrs. Fairfax folded up her knitting: I took my portfolio: we curtseyed to him，received a frigid bow in return，and so withdrew.

"You said Mr. Rochester was not strikingly peculiar，Mrs. Fairfax," I observed，when I rejoined her in her room，after putting Adele to bed.

"Well，is he?"

"I think so: he is very changeful and abrupt."

"True: no doubt he may appear so to a stranger，but I am so accustomed to his manner，I never think of it; and then，if he has peculiarities of temper，allowance should be made."

"Why?"

"partly because it is his nature- and we can none of us help our nature; and partly because he has painful thoughts，no doubt，to harass him，and make his spirits unequal."

"What about?"

"Family troubles，for one thing."

"But he has no family."

"Not now，but he has had- or，at least，relatives. He lost his elder brother a few years since."

"His elder brother?"

"Yes. The present Mr. Rochester has not been very long in possession of the property; only about nine years."

"Nine years is a tolerable time. Was he so very fond of his brother as to be still inconsolable for his loss?"