In March, Basil receives an invitation to see Verena give an address at Mrs. Burrage’s house in New York. Though he does not usually attend fashionable parties, “he would have exposed himself to almost any social discomfort” for Verena (193). He wrote to her in Boston, and while she did not respond, he is encouraged that she had Mrs. Burrage invite him. Basil looks forward to seeing her speak despite “the fact that he detested her views” (193). He believes her public persona is “distilled into her” (193) by others and sees her as “a touching, ingenuous victim” (193) he hopes to “rescue” (193).

Mrs. Burrage’s guests look at each other with “a kind of cruelty” (193) Basil finds common among the fashionable. People’s eyes follow him, and he wonders if it is evident that he is “a kind of exception” (194). Self-conscious, Basil waits to go into the music-room where Verena will speak. He sees Olive sitting on a couch in the corner, where she is “out of the way” (195). Despite her cold reception, he asks if he can sit beside her. Olive expresses disdain for those at the party and says she will go into the music-room when she is invited.