'22 A Jfental Sln/gjh:
she treats them all with only a half-disguised disdain, Felix
Brown acknowledges.
He takes her in to dinner presently ; but not until soup
is half forgotten docs she think it worth her while to look
at him and ascertain more clearly what manner of man he
may be. That he should be handsome is nothing; but
that he should look so decidedly, so irrepro;u'hably bred is
nluiost annoying. Her one swit't glaui'o con\duces her that
he is just such an one in appearance as she has been accus¬
tomed to go down to dinner with in the very best houses.
" Kducation is e\identlv running birth hard, nowadays !
When lie opens his lips, however, some natural taint will
bo discernible, and breeding will proclaim itself.''
He is ga/.iug now intently across the table to where
Patricia is sitting talking with a light and jirettv ahan-
don, as is her wont- and seems (ipenly anuised with the
girl's gaiety Is he going tii fall in love with Patricia 1 It
would be ipiite the correct thing for an aspiring cotton-uian
to do—to lose his heart ambitiously to the daughter of a
family as old as his is voung.
As she comes to this point, Felix turns to her with a
little puzzled air.
" Your sister reminds me of someone," he savs, " but I
c^m't think ivho it. is."
" Seuie one you kno\v ? Oh, 1 think not," returns she
sveiulilv. Then, as acorreeti\e to her disguised rudeness,
" iM N' sister, I ha\e al\\a\s thoui;'hl, has a. very uncommon
face."
" Yes," says Felix retlectively ; then cabidy, " not so un¬
common as yours, howe\cr."
INliss Heriot—who has apparent 1}' been deaf to this re¬
mark, judging by the extreme immobilily of her counten¬
ance—smiles genti}' acritss the table at iier brother, and
then again, with a little start, addresses lu'rself to l*\'lix, as
though ho were an after-thought or anything else equally
unimportant.
" Y'^ou were saying-------" she liazards vaguely.
" Was 1 ? I don't know, I'm sure," i-eturns he, with an
appreciative smile. " If I ira.s-, I'm afraid I haxc for¬
gotten. l>y-fhe-bye, you were not iu town this season?"
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