“I’m the best judge of my partners,� said Diana, with indignant dignity; “if any one speaks it should be my father.�
“Aptly said,� he admitted suavely, “and the colonel is one in a thousand, but you wind him around your little finger.�
“You do not know Colonel Royall,� said Colonel Royall’s daughter, with just pride.
Jacob lifted his hat. “Vive le Roi!� he said.
She gave him an indignant glance. “You are a mocker.�
“On my soul, no!�
“Jacob,� said Diana, “your soul, like the rich man’s, may scarcely pass through the eye of a needle.�
“My dear cousin, my soul has been passing through it under your rebukes. What shall I do to please you?�
Diana rode on, her chin up. The path was narrow, and Jacob, falling behind, had only the privilege of admiring the long slim lines of her athletic young back, and the way she sat her horse. Beyond the cedars the path forked on the road, and he came up again.
“I am chastened,� he said; “shall I be forgiven?�