'The girls swarm towards a cut glass vase overflowing with chrysanthemums, and claim their seats around the central table , leaving Anne stranded and feigning indifference with half a dozen others. The flowers are pink, white and mauve like the Les Sylphides ballet skirts on the tablemats at Anne's home.
Mrs Richards delves in her bag to retrieve another bunch of chrysanthemums, this time with the russet sheen of hen's feathers...' (Introduction)
