She remained at the palace for six months, and at the end of that time she
went to her own place in Scotland. Mrs. Eustace had strongly advised her
to ask her aunt, Lady Linlithgow, to accompany her, but in refusing to do
this Lizzie was quite firm. She had endured Lady Linlithgow for that year
between her father's death and her marriage; she was now beginning to dare
to hope for the enjoyment of the good things which she had won, and the
presence of the dowager countess, "the vulturess," was certainly not one
of these good things. In what her enjoyment was to consist, she had not as
yet quite formed a definite conclusion. She liked jewels. She liked
admiration. She liked the power of being arrogant to those around her. And
she liked good things to eat. But there were other matters that were also
dear to her. She did like music, though it may be doubted whether she
would ever play it or even listen to it alone. She did like reading, and
especially the reading of poetry, though even in this she was false and
pretentious, skipping, pretending to have read, lying about books, and
making up her market of literature for outside admiration at the easiest
possible cost of trouble.
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