Miss Phyllis assumed a staid and virtuous air.
'They must be properly brought up, Mr. Carter,' said she.
'Is there a house opposite?' I asked; and Miss Phyllis blushed. Mrs. Hilary advanced, holding out a letter.
'You may as well post this for me,' said she. 'Oh, and would you like to come to lunch to-morrow?'
'To meet the Paragon?'
'No. She'll be there, of course; but you see it's Saturday, and Hilary will be here; and I thought you might take him off somewhere and leave Phyllis and me to have a quiet talk with her.'
'That won't amuse her much,' I ventured to remark.
'She's not coming to be amused,' said Mrs. Hilary severely.
'All right; I'll come,' said I, taking my hat.
'Here's the note for Miss Bannerman,' said Mrs. Hilary.
That sort of thing never surprises me. I looked at the letter and read 'Miss M. E. Bannerman.' 'M. E.' stood for 'Maud Elizabeth.' I put my hat back on the table.
'What sort of a looking person is this Miss Bannerman?' I asked.
'Oh, a spare, upright woman—hair a little grey, and—I don't know how to describe it—her face looks a little weather-beaten. She wears glasses.'
