“Ferdy is a splendid fellow, in his own way,” assented Helen, warmly, “and any girl might do a great deal worse than marry him; but he is not Inez’ style at all. I believe her trip to Europe is really to get away from him. I know he thinks that is the reason, and is simply inconsolable.”
“De Peyster would be a good match,” remarked Armstrong, thoughtfully. “He has plenty of money and plenty of leisure, and he ought to be able to make his wife fairly comfortable.”
“But that is not what Inez wants. She has great ideas about affinities, and Ferdy does not answer to the description.”
“Then there is your uncle Peabody,” Armstrong prompted, helpfully.
“Yes, there is dear Uncle Peabody. You will enjoy him immensely.”
“Does he live up to his reputation of a man with an ‘ism’?”
“Oh, Jack! Some one has been maligning him to you. That is because he is the only original member of our family, and really the most useful.”
“Indeed! If that is your estimate of him, it shall also be mine. I was prepared for a well-developed specimen of the genus crank.”
“Wait till you see him.” Helen laughed at her husband’s mental picture. “He is a crank, in a way, but he is a mighty cheerful one to have around.”
“He believes in making an air-plant of one’s self, in order to help him forget his other troubles, does he not?”