“Yes; and capricious at times!” said the other, slowly.
Mary colored, and her voice faltered as she said,—
“There they were unjust. The impracticable tempers I have to deal with—the untutored minds and undisciplined natures—often lead me into seeming contradictions.”
“Like the present, perhaps,” said Miss Henderson.
“How! the present?” said Mary.
“That, while claiming the merit of humility, you at once enter upon a self-defence.”
“Well, perhaps I am capricious!” said Mary, smiling.
“And haughty?” asked the other, slowly.
“I believe so!” said Mary, with a degree of dignity that seemed to display the sentiment while confessing to it.
“I have never heard a heavier accusation against Miss Martin than these,” said she, “and I have lived with those who rarely scruple how to criticise their betters.”