oo charming. Such a gentle soft creature,
and so highly-strung. The other day after he had sung at my house--it
was something of Richard Strauss's, certainly a very enervating song, I
must own that--he simply fainted at the piano, and had to be taken away.
So, if you give a party, do have him, dear Mary! You will, won't you?"

"Most certainly not! A protege of yours who faints at the piano wouldn't
be at all suitable for one of _my_ Evenings, thank you, Virginia."

Lady Virginia did not answer. She evidently had not heard. She never
listened and never thought of one subject for more than two seconds at a
time. She used a long-handled lorgnette, but usually dropped it before
it had reached her eye.

"Oh! and there's something else I wanted to speak to you about. A sweet
girl, a friend of mine (poor thing!), has lost her parents. They were
generals or clergymen or something, and she's obliged to do something,
so she's going in for hats. So sensible and brave of her! She's taken
the _sweetest_ little shop just out of Bond Street. Do, dear, go and get
some toques there, for my sake. Won't you?"

"_Some toques?_" repeated Aunt William. "I don't know what you mean.
Hats are not things you order by the half-dozen. I have my winter's
bonnet, my spring bonnet which I have got already, a sun-hat for
travelling in the summer, and so forth."

"I got a beautiful picture-hat from her," said Lady Virginia dreamily.
"An enormous black one, with Nattier blue roses in front and white
feathers at the back--- only five guineas. But then she makes special
prices for me, of course."

"No doubt she does," said Aunt William.

"Of course I can't wear it, my dear," continued Virginia. "I hate to
attract attention so, and I look too showy in a picture-hat with my fair
hair. But it was a kindness to the girl. Poor girl!"

Aunt William was boiling over.

"Of course you can't wear it. Do you imagine you can wear the hat you've
got on now, Virginia?"

"What this? It's only a little flower toque."

"At _our_ age," said Aunt William, "_only_ little flower toques, as you
call them, should be left to younger people. Oh how much nicer you would
look, Virginia, in a black or brown silk dress, and a close bonnet with
strings, say with a chrysanthemum or two, and a few bugles if you like.
It would be so much more suitable."

"What _is_ a close bonnet?" asked Lady Virginia, trying to concentrate
her thoughts and not in the least offended.

The