Ernest
But, my dear girl——
Helen
[smiles]
He thinks so, too. Only he has a quaint, mannish notion that he must "protect me." [To Ernest, patting his arm.] Haven't you, dear!
[Again she has raised the shield of flippancy.
Judge
What did I tell you, Theodore? The old marriage doesn't fit the New Woman. A self-supporting girl like Helen objects to obeying a mere man—like Ernest.
Helen
[patting the Judge's arm affectionately, too]