n don't break in with your actinias and stuff!'

'Certainly not,' said Louis, gravely.

The first interruption came from James himself. Leaping to his feet
with a sudden bound, he exclaimed, 'There they are!' and stood
transfixed in a gaze of ecstasy.

'You have made me smudge my lake,' said Louis, in the mild tone of
'Diamond, Diamond!'

'I tell you, there they are!' cried James, rushing into wild activity.

'One would think it the Fair Unknown,' said Louis, not troubling
himself to look round, nor desisting from washing out his smudge.

'It is! it is!--it is all of them! Here they come, I tell you, and the
place is a very merman's cave!'

'Take care--the serpula--don't!' as James hurriedly opened the door
leading to the stairs--disposed of the raw meat on one step and the
serpulas on another, and hurled after them the heap of seaweed, all but
one trailing festoon of 'Luckie Minnie's lines,' which, while his back
was turned, Louis by one dexterous motion wreathed round the crown of
his straw hat; otherwise never stirring, but washing quietly on, until
he rose as little Priscilla opened the door, and stood aside, mutely
overawed at the stream of flounced ladies that flowed past, and seemed
to fill up the entire room. It was almost a surprise to find that,
after all, there were only three of them!

'I knew I was not mistaken,' said a very engaging, affectionate voice.
'It is quite shocking to have to introduce myself to you--Lady Conway--'

'My aunt!' cried Louis, with eager delight--'and my cousin!' he added,
turning with a slight blush towards the maiden, whom he felt, rather
than saw, to be the worthy object of yesterday's rapture.

'Not quite,' she answered, not avoiding the grasp of his hand, but
returning it with calm, distant politeness.

'Not quite,' repeated Lady Conway. 'Your real cousins are no farther
off than Beauchastel--'

'Where you must come and see them,' added the third lady--a portly,
cordial, goodnatured dame, whom Lady Conway introduced as Mrs. Mansell,
who had known his mother well; and Louis making a kind of presentation
of his cousin James, the two elder ladies were located on two of the
chairs: the younger one, as if trying to be out of the way, placed
herself on the locker. Jem stood leaning on the back of the other
chair; and Louis stood over his aunt, in an ecstasy at the meeting--at
the kind, warm manner and pleasant face of his aunt--and above all, at
the indescribable pl