"I don't. His society is not good for Dick."
Staffer smiled, though he was puzzled. On his last visit Williamson had rather avoided Dick.
"He can't do him much harm; and, after all, it does not look as if Dick would marry Elsie, as we once thought was possible."
"No; Elsie will not marry him, and I would not wish it, if she were willing."
Staffer was somewhat surprised.
"Then why need you bother about him?" he said. "If he indulges in foolish extravagances, it's his affair."
She looked at Staffer with a listless expression.
"I don't think you would understand; but I do not want him to come to harm."
"Well, there's something else to talk about. It won't be long before Dick is his own master, and we must leave Appleyard. This will make a big difference, because our means are small and Elsie has been taught no profession. What will she do then, unless she marries somebody?"
"I do not know," Mrs. Woodhouse answered in a placid tone.