"You came to get information, did you? Of course you did. Spies generally do."
"I came to see you."
"To see _me_, hey? Then why didn't you come like a man? What's the meaning of this disguise?"
"Because you refused information once, and I thought that if I came in another character, with a different story, I might have a better chance."
"Pooh! don't I see that you're lying? Why didn't you come up through the avenue like a man, instead of sneaking along the paths? Answer me that."
"I wasn't sneaking. I was merely taking a little stroll in your beautiful grounds."
"Wasn't sneaking?" repeated Obed; "then I'd like very much to know what sneaking is, for my own private information. If any man ever looked like a sneak, you did when I first caught your eye."
"I wasn't sneaking," reiterated Gualtier; "I was simply strolling about. I found a gate at the lower end of the park, and walked up quietly. I was anxious to see you."
"Anxious to see me?" said Obed, with a peculiar intonation.
"Yes."