Page 161 - erewhon

customs of my country.
To return, however, to Arowhena. I soon gathered that
neither Mr. nor Mrs. Nosnibor would have any objection
to my marrying into the family; a physical excellence is
considered in Erewhon as a set off against almost any other
disqualification, and my light hair was sufficient to make me
an eligible match. But along with this welcome fact I gath-
ered another which filled me with dismay: I was expected
to marry Zulora, for whom I had already conceived a great
aversion. At first I hardly noticed the little hints and the
artifices which were resorted to in order to bring us togeth-
er, but after a time they became too plain. Zulora, whether
she was in love with me or not, was bent on marrying me,
and I gathered in talking with a young gentleman of my ac-
quaintance who frequently visited the house and whom I
greatly disliked, that it was considered a sacred and inviola-
ble rule that whoever married into a family must marry the
eldest daughter at that time unmarried. The young gentle-
man urged this upon me so frequently that I at last saw he
was in love with Arowhena himself, and wanted me to get
Zulora out of the way; but others told me the same story as
to the custom of the country, and I saw there was a serious
difficulty. My only comfort was that Arowhena snubbed my
rival and would not look at him. Neither would she look at
me; nevertheless there was a difference in the manner of her
disregard; this was all I could get from her.
Not that she avoided me; on the contrary I had many a
tete-a-tete with her, for her mother and sister were anxious
for me to deposit some part of my pension in the Musical

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