Page:Elizabeth's Pretenders.djvu/26

Rh Mrs. William Shaw, however, did not complain of this. She declared that dear Bessie's "shyness" was only natural at her age. She knew she would turn out quite charming by-and-by, and she assured Anthony he need be under no apprehension as to his daughter growing up plain.

He replied most truly that he had none. He liked his child's expressive face; but whether others would like it two or three years hence never troubled him. As to her "shyness," he told his sister-in-law it was quite a mistake to fancy Elizabeth was shy. She had not yet learned the discipline of life—the expediency, in intercourse with others, of appearing interested in the uninteresting; that was all.

Mrs. William smiled. She always smiled when she did not know exactly what to say.

Elizabeth found she had fewer subjects in common with her aunt than with her uncle; but Mrs. William was more than kind—she was pressing in her invitations to Farley Manor. And then she was so pretty to look at, and wore such lovely colours!—colours which would be so beautiful in a picture, but which the girl felt that she would never dare to wear; in short, there was so much to admire, or to be grateful for, in her aunt, that Elizabeth knew she ought to reciprocate more warmly than she did Mrs. William Shaw's demonstrations of affection. There was a grey parrot called "Coco" at Farley, who had clearly been bred in the kitchen, before he was promoted to a perch in the drawing-room, and became the object of Mrs. Shaw's caresses. Elizabeth was always amused by the bird's culinary remarks, but her