“Yes, indeed,” said her companion, “a pretty big something, I should say. It must be tiresome work. I hope,” he went on, with a little hesitation, “that now Ryder has seen things for himself more thoroughly than before—indeed, I doubt if he ever walked through this village before to-day—I hope that he will give some substantial help.”
“I hope so too,” said Betty dryly. “Oh,” she went on, with a little gasp, “it would be nice to be rich!”
Horace’s face fell a little.
“Do you feel that?” he said quickly. “Don’t you think that people are often quite as happy, or happier, who are not very rich, especially if they are without great responsibilities? Of course few things would be worse than to be a large proprietor with lots of people you should look after, and no means for doing it.”
“Yes,” Betty agreed, “it reminds me of what mamma has often told us about grandpapa’s and Uncle Avone’s difficulties in Ireland. But with your Mr Morion it is quite different, of course—isn’t he very rich?”
“I should say so,” said Horace.
“I don’t think I should wish to be very rich like that,” said Betty simply. “There would be such a lot of trouble about it, and I should not be clever enough to manage things well—even a woman’s part of things. Now Frances, for instance,” she went on thoughtlessly, “would be perfection in such a position.”
“I can well imagine it,” said Horace cordially; but, instantly realising that she had said one of the things she had better have left unsaid, Betty looked up at him with one of those sudden changes of expression peculiar to her, and by no means always easy to interpret.
“Oh, but don’t misunderstand about her,” she said. “She’s not a bit ambitious or fond of being important, or—or anything like that. She would be quite happy in a far simpler kind of life. Indeed, I don’t know any sort of life she couldn’t fit herself into, though Eira and I can’t help feeling that she is thrown away here, in this little out-of-the-way corner.”
“But yet what would you do without her?” said Horace. “Could you—can you imagine for yourself—we’ll say—the ever being happy away from her?”