"Oh no," corrected the old woman, tartly; "you took the better, and Freddy took the worse."
Mrs. Penworthy, not being ready with an answer, murmured something about "jealous old thing," and moved away with her court to where Lord Sargon was holding forth on his pet craze. "If only our ancient kings were back," he said, but not too loud, as the Duke might have disapproved of the disloyalty, "Christmas would be Christmas. In the good old times of the blessed martyr Charles----"
"The bad old times," contradicted Mr. Graham; "it was then that our beloved country began to annex places which are useless. Let us give up everything beyond the Channel, and attend to our own country. Then, indeed, Christmas will be Christmas."
"And the parish pump will pour forth beer," said Mr. Jaffray, referring to the badge of the Little Englander.
"Ah, the conduits ran wine in those sweet old days," sighed his sister, in her poetic vein.
"And people never washed," said a truculent old gentleman given to sanitation. "What I say is, let every house have a bath-room."
"I say, Jim, is this going to last for ever?" asked Leah, considerably bored by these intellectual fireworks.
"A week, anyhow," replied Jim, who was feeling happy after a large dinner; "but if you will come to the Zoo, Leah, you mustn't find fault with th' animals."
"They are scarcely so interesting."
"Oh! Animals don't talk, I 'spose you mean."