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THE GOVERNESS. 

In London, at the moment of my return, my brother was capering round the ring, followed by his doctor whom he hated and a valet who dared not approach him. Then came my mother's frightened maid, and last and least of all, my English governess.

This governess, whom I remember entirely by the incongruity of her presence, had been purposely engaged for me. She seemed quite calm and unaffected by the unusual surroundings in which she found herself. The family could be as mad as hatters, it was no concern of hers. Had she not her own particular mission -- the teaching of English and History from the very beginning?

The day after my arrival she placed before me, with the order to learn them by heart, a long chronological list of the Saxon kings. I was in a state of mind bordering on panic, and extremely unhappy. The Saxon kings meant nothing to me and I ignored them completely. To the English governess, this meant open rebellion. She complained to my mother who, intending me for other than scholastic purposes, paid no attention to her grievance. This led the governess leaving -- and of her own accord.

I have always doubted whether this English lady was really as dense as she appeared. It is possible that she dogmatised in order to mitigate the morbid irrationality about her. On leaving, did she expatiate on the queer, mad ways of the American nomads at De Kaysar's Hotel?...

It was not long before I realised that there was every reason for my being anxious. I found that my mother had kept to her old habit of staying up at nights, and that my brother, with the rest of the household followed her example. My mother would sleep a few odd hours during the