Page:Anthony Hope - The Dolly Dialogues.djvu/29

 'A thing not only atrociously vulgar at all times, but under the circumstances—need I say more? Mr. Carter, you were engaged in chasing my son's future bride round a table!'

'Pardon me, Lady Mickleham. Your son's future bride was engaged in chasing me round a table.'

'It is the same thing,' said Lady Mickleham.

'I should have thought there was a distinction,' said I.

'None at all.'

I fell back on a second line of defence.

'I didn't let her catch me, Lady Mickleham,' I pleaded.

Lady Mickleham grew quite red. This made me feel more at my ease.

'No, sir. If you had'

'Goodness knows!' I murmured, shaking my head.

'As it happened, however, my son entered in the middle of this disgraceful'

'It was at the beginning,' said I, with a regretful sigh.

Upon this—and I have really never been so pleased at anything in all my life—the Countess, the violence of her emotions penetrating to her very fingers, gripped the handle of her 'starers' with such force that she broke it in two! She was a woman of the world, and in a moment she looked as if nothing had happened. With me it was different; and that I am not now on Lady Mickleham's visiting list is due to (inter alia et enormia) the fact that I laughed! It was