Frances looked disgusted. She said little more, but soon persuaded the reluctant Win to postpone his investigations and come down again into the Royal Square.
"Now, Sis, what's the matter with you?" Win inquired on seeing her flushed face.
"Oh, you didn't hear that man say he knew I was an American by the way
I talked," sniffed Frances indignantly.
"Anybody would think you didn't want to be one," commented Roger bluntly.
"I wouldn't be anything else," retorted Frances, "only I don't care to have fun poked at the way I talk."
Win's glance traveled from his sister's annoyed face to Edith's, which wore a look of perplexity.
"We're polite," he remarked. "Here's Edith, who wouldn't be anything but English."
"No," said Edith gravely. "One always feels that way about one's country. But I understand what Frances means. And I see why people know you are not English. It isn't so much your pronunciation, but you put words in odd places in the sentence and some of your expressions are most unusual," she ended apologetically. "I like them. It is interesting to hear things called by new names. Just now Fran said 'poke fun' when she meant 'criticise,' and Roger says a thing is 'fine and dandy' when I should call it 'top-hole.' That is the difference, is it not?"
The others laughed and Edith's attempt to bridge a dangerous situation ended successfully. Presently their whereabouts absorbed their attention for Win had left the map behind him on the library table.
For a time they wandered at random, following one narrow street after another, seeing interesting shop windows, but presently discovered that they did not know where they were.