As they sat down at a little table, and the coffee made its appearance, the girl said in a loud voice—

“I’m not partial to coffee. I’d sooner have a cup of tay!”

“But coffee is better at this hour. No one drinks tea immediately after dinner; and, my dear, you really must begin to drop such words as ‘tay.’ Now sit here quietly, and listen to the way other girls speak.”

“And take a lesson for nothing?”

“Yes, and profit by it. Remember that your father arrives to-morrow.”

“Oh, Miss Usher dear, I’m terribly scared of him!”

“You must put that feeling out of your mind, and you will soon learn to love him; he loves you already.”

“What? Oh, balderdash! Now, how could he love one that he’s only set eyes on a few times.”

“Quite naturally, as a matter of course, for your mother’s sake.”