"Wait till she is in existence then."
"But if I slight her now, will she be more inclined to be sociable then?"
"You need not slight her—be civil if you like—but why seek her out unnecessarily?"
"Because I foresee that his marriage, whenever it takes place, will cause a fracas, and I should wish them both to feel they have a friend in me."
"Well, it is an affair that concerns you no doubt, much more nearly than me, and I cannot presume to dictate. But I think all manœuvring dangerous."
"Besides," continued Miss Osborne, changing the ground of her reasoning, "Emma Watson, in herself seems a nice conversable girl, and, I assure you, at Osborne Castle, when there is no party in the house, such an acquisition is not to be despised."
"Why, Rosa, you never spoke a word to her—how can you tell that she is conversable."
"Not from my own observation of course; but I can form some judgment from what Mrs. Willis and her brother have told us—"
"And your brother, too," said Miss Carr, with some emphasis; "he seems to be taking some trouble to make her acquaintance."
"Who, Osborne? yes, he admires her, I believe; but his is a very passive sort of admiration, not in the least likely to lead to any vehement results."