way home.

Mr. Winter retired to his room to lie down, and his daughter and
niece remained in the sitting-room. Mary sat down and untied her
bonnet, but did not burst into her usual flood of comments on the
events of the day. Miss Winter looked at her and said--

"You look tired, dear, and over-excited."

"Oh yes, so I am. I've had such a quarrel with Tom."

"A quarrel--you're not serious?"

"Indeed I am, though. I quite hated him for five minutes at
least."

"But what did he do?"

"Why, he taunted me with being too civil to everybody, and it
made me so angry. He said I pretended to take an interest in ever
so many things, just to please people, when I didn't really care
about them. And it isn't true, now, Katie, is it?"

"No, dear. He never could have said that. You must have
misunderstood him."

"There, I knew you would say so. And if it were true, I'm sure it
isn't wrong. When people talk to you, it 's so easy to seem
pleased and interested in what they are saying; and then they
like you, and it is so pleasant to be liked. Now, Katie, do you
ever snap people's noses off, or tell them you think them very
foolish, and that you don't care, and that what they are saying
is all of no consequence?"

"I, dear? I couldn't do it to save my life."

"Oh, I was sure you couldn't. And he may say what he will, but I
am quite sure he would not have been pleased if we had not made
ourselves pleasant to his friends."

"That's quite true. He has told me himself half a dozen times how
delighted he was to see you so popular."

"And you too, Katie?"

"Oh yes. He was very well pleased with me. But it is you who have
turned all the heads in the college, Mary. You are Queen of St.
Ambrose beyond a doubt just now."

"No, no, Katie; not more than you at any rate."

"I say yes, yes, Mary. You will always be ten times as popular as
I; some people have the gift of it; I wish I had. But why do you
look so grave again?"

"Why, Katie, don't you see you are just saying over again, only
in a different way, what your provoking cousin--I shall call him
Mr. Brown, I think, in future--was telling me for my good in St.
John's gardens. You saw how long we were away from you; well, he
was lecturing me all the time, only think; and now you are going
to tell it me all over again. But go on, dear; I sha'n't mind
anything from you."

She put her arm round her cousin's waist, and looked up playfully
into her face. Miss Winter saw at o