The scene opens with a description of the two characters: one is a naughty and mischievous child from a wealthy family, and the other is a low-class child who has just arrived in London. The narrator tells us that he has seen this sort of show before. He tells the audience that one of the characters is from a "rich family" , while the other one is "naughty and mischievous" . He asks the audience to imagine what it would be like for the two children to live in the same house for a week. He explains that he is worried that the change of environment would make the child "a slave to vanity" and that he will ask the girl to go visit "claire" in the capital, London. He says that he remembers crying when he was a child, and that crying is a good sign that he's grown up. He also says that the girl's bedroom is empty and that there is no furniture in the house. He suggests that they make fried rice for the girl, but that he already has ten years of "tiredness" after his long journey to London, so he'll just go out and work for a while. He then asks the girl if she'd like to eat some pigeon stew. The girl says that she would rather die outside than eat her food, but the narrator tells her that forcing the girl further will only make her "stubborn rebellious"