In an instruction to the “Class rouge” in the year 1701, she describes in great detail how a “reasonable little girl” spends her day at Saint-Cyr. The “Entretien” is particularly interesting, as enabling us to reconstruct the programme of the day’s work at the celebrated “Maison de Saint-Louis.” Nor is it less interesting, as showing Madame de Maintenon’s methods of instruction. One likes to picture the Classroom of the “Rouge” for the occasion—a charming big room, with tall windows looking out on a beautiful park, with coloured prints and maps on the walls, and fifty-six little girls, in the uniform I have described, sitting in their benches. One fancies that they have hurried back from recreation in the park, with more promptness than usual at the news that Madame is coming to them to-day. And now the door opens, and they all stand up to receive her. We can picture her seated on the rostrum, and our little friends in their places—and the “Entretien” ready to begin. I had forgotten one detail: At Saint-Cyr they always began a lesson with the recitation of the “Veni Creator.” She looks round the eager little faces, and picks one out. “Mademoiselle de Provieuse,” says Madame, “do you know what is meant by a ‘reasonable’ little girl?” Now, it is not quite easy to define in so many words a reasonable little girl, though one may know in one’s own mind very well what a reasonable little girl is. So Mademoiselle de Provieuse hesitates, and Madame comes to the rescue. It appears that “a reasonable person” is simply “a person who is always doing the right thing at the right time.” That sounds simple, and every little girl present is interested immediately. It seems, then, that to be “reasonable”—and if there is one thing every little Saint-Cyrienne worth her salt wants to be, it is “reasonable”—one has nothing to do, but to _do_ as well as one possibly can whatever one is supposed to be _doing_ at any particular time. Let us see how that works out. The first thing our “reasonable” little girl does when she awakes in the morning is to make her Morning Offering—and that she does with all her heart. Then, when she is called, she gets up immediately (even though six o’clock seems rather early), dresses herself quickly and modestly, but as neatly and carefully as she can. After that, if she has any time to spare, she helps the smaller children to dress, and takes her share in making beds, tidying up the dormitory, sweeping, dusting, and polishing. No half-done work for her—untidily made beds, sweeping that leaves all the dirt in the corners, or polishing that shows more smears than anything else! No, whatever a “reasonable” little girl does, she does with all her heart, and her only pride is in work well done.