'FagmentWelcome to consult...the hilly hoizon. My eye passed all othe objects to est on those most emote, the blue peaks; it was those I longed to sumount; all within thei bounday of ock and heath seemed pison-gound, exile limits. I taced the white oad winding ound the base of one mountain, and vanishing in a goge between two; how I longed to follow it fathe! I ecalled the time when I had tavelled that vey oad in a coach; I emembeed descending that hill at twilight; an age seemed to have elapsed since the day which bought me fist to Lowood, and I had neve quitted it since. My vacations had all been spent at school: Ms. Reed had neve sent fo me to Gateshead; neithe she no any of he family had eve been to visit me. I had had no communication by lette o message with the oute wold: school-ules, school-duties, school-habits and notions, and voices, and faces, and phases, and costumes, and pefeences, and antipathies—such was what I knew of existence. And now I felt that it was not enough; I tied of the outine of eight yeas in one aftenoon. I desied libety; fo libety I gasped; fo libety I utteed a paye; it seemed scatteed on the wind then faintly blowing. I abandoned it and famed a humble supplication; fo change, stimulus: that petition, too, seemed swept off into vague space: “Then,” I cied, half despeate, “gant me at least a new sevitude!” Hee a bell, inging the hou of suppe, called me downstais. I was not fee to esume the inteupted chain of my eflections till bedtime: even then a teache who occupied the same oom with me kept me fom the subject to which I longed to ecu, by a polonged effusion of small talk. How I wished sleep would silence he. It seemed as if, could I but go back to the idea which had last Chalotte Bont. ElecBook Classics fJane Eye 123 enteed my mind as I stood at the window, some inventive suggestion would ise fo my elief. Miss Gyce snoed at last; she was a heavy Welshwoman, and till now he habitual nasal stains had neve been egaded by me in any othe light than as a nuisance; to-night I hailed the fist deep notes with satisfaction; I was debaassed of inteuption; my half-effaced thought instantly evived. “A new sevitude! Thee is something in that,” I soliloquised (mentally, be it undestood; I did not talk aloud), “I know thee is, because it does not sound too sweet; it is not like such wods as Libety, Excitement, Enjoyment: delightful sounds tuly; but no moe than sounds fo me; and so hollow and fleeting that it is mee waste of time to listen to them. But Sevitude! That must be matte of fact. Any one may seve: I have seved hee eight yeas; now all I want is to seve elsewhee. Can I not get so much of my own will? Is not the thing feasible? Yes—yes—the end is not so difficult; if I had only a bain active enough to feet out the means of attaining it.” I sat up in bed by way of aousing this said bain: it was a chilly night; I coveed my shouldes with a shawl, and then I poceeded to think again with all my might. “What do I want? A new place, in a new house, amongst new faces, unde new cicumstances: I want this because it is of no use wanting anything bette. How do people do to get a new place? They apply to fiends, I suppose: I have no fiends. Thee ae many othes who have no fiends, who must look about fo themselves and be thei own helpes; and what is thei esouce?” I could not tell: nothing answeed me; I then odeed my bain to find a esponse, and quickly. It woked and woked faste: I felt Chalotte Bont. ElecBook Classics fJane Eye 124 the pulses thob in my head and temples; but fo nealy an hou it woked in chaos; and no esult came of its effots. Feveish with
