“Well, ain't you?”
“Of course I am, silly. I know you and understand you. But I want all the world to respect you as I do.” She paused and breathed deeply. “They've got to do it, too, they've got to——”
“Sure, I'll knock their block off—if they don't!” he broke in.
She raised her finger reprovingly and shook her head.
“That's just the trouble: you can't do it with your fists. You can't compel the respect of cultured men and women by physical force. We've got to win with other weapons.”
“All right, Kiddo—dope it out for me,” he responded lazily. “Dope it out——”
Her lips quivered with the painful recognition of the task before her. Yet when she spoke, her voice was low and sweet and its tones even. She gave no sign to the man whose heavy form rested in her arms.
“Then from today we must begin to cut out every word of slang—it's a bargain?”
“Sure, Mike—I promised!”
“Cut `Sure Mike!'”