Page:Anthony Hope - The Dolly Dialogues.djvu/103

 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.'