'you could feel the spirits in that house , all right , ' said the cook , 'and if you closed your eyes halfway , you could see them but miss mary beth did n't have to do that she could just see them plain as day all the time , and she talked to them and called them by name ' the cook also said mary beth drank brandy straight from the bottle , but that was all right , because mary beth was a real lady and a lady could do what she pleased , and mary beth was a kind and generous person same held true for old monsieur julien , but he would not have thought of drinking brandy straight from the bottle , or anything else straight from a bottle , and always liked his sherry in a crystal glass .