Mrs. Hazeldean (positively).—“Yes, certainly young.”
Parson (no less positively).—“I should say just the contrary. Its tone is too serene, and
its style too simple for a young man. Besides, I don’t know any young man who would send me his book, and this book has been sent me—very handsomely bound too, you see. Depend upon it, Moss is the man—quite his turn of mind.”
Mrs. dale.—“You are too provoking, Charles dear! Mr. Moss is so remarkably plain, too.”
Randal.—“Must an author be handsome?”
Parson.—“Ha, ha! Answer that, if you can, Carry.”
Carry remained mute and disdainful.
Squire (with great naïveté).—“Well, I don’t think there’s much in the book, whoever wrote it; for I’ve read it myself, and understand every word of it.”
Mrs. dale.—“I don’t see why you should suppose it was written by a man at all. For my part, I think it must be a woman.”
Mrs. hazeldean.—“Yes, there’s a passage about maternal affection, which only a woman could have written.”