orth talking about.

"If you were worth accepting you were worth talking about."

"Perhaps I was neither," said he.

"Well; I am not going to flatter you yet. Only as I think our Flo is
without exception the most perfect girl I ever saw, I don't suppose she
would be guilty of making a bad choice. Cissy, dear, this is Mr.
Clavering."

Cissy got up from her chair, and came up to him. "Mamma says I am to
love you very much," said Cissy, putting up her face to be kissed.

"But I did not tell you to say I had told you," said Mrs. Burton,
laughing.

"And I will love you very much," said Harry, taking her up in his arms.

"But not so much as Aunt Florence--will you?"

They all knew it. It was clear to him that everybody connected with the
Burtons had been told of the engagement, and that they all spoke of it
openly, as they did of any other everyday family occurrence. There was
not much reticence among the Burtons. He could not but feel this, though
now, at the present moment, he was disposed to think specially well of
the family because Mrs. Burton and her children were so nice.

"And this is another daughter?"

"Yes; another future niece, Mr. Clavering. But I suppose I may call you
Harry; may I not? My name is Cecilia. Yes, that is Miss Pert."

"I'm not Miss Pert," said the little soft round ball of a girl from the
chair. "I'm Sophy Burton. Oh, you musn't tittle."

Harry found himself quite at home in ten minutes; and, before Mr. Burton
had returned, had been taken upstairs into the nursery to see Theodore
Burton, Junior, in his cradle, Theodore Burton, Junior, being as yet
only some few months old. "Now you've seen us all," said Mrs. Burton,
"and we'll go downstairs and wait for my husband. I must let you into a
secret, too. We don't dine till past seven; you may as well remember
that for the future. But I wanted to have you for half an hour to myself
before dinner, so that I might look at you, and make up my mind about
Flo's choice. I hope you won't be angry with me?"

"And how have you made up your mind?"

"If you want to find that out, you must get it through Florence. You may
be quite sure I shall tell her; and I suppose I may be quite sure she
will tell you. Does she tell you everything?"

"I tell her everything," said Harry, feeling himself, however, to be a
little conscience-smitten at the moment, as he remembered his interview
with Lady Ongar. Things had occurred this very day which he certainly
co