“Was it cold?”
“Not at all. The cars were very hot.”
“Have you had any snow yet at Boston?”
“No, none at all yet.”
“Now I feel that we're talking sense. I hope you found everything in your room? I can't look after things as I would like, and so I inquire.”
“There's everything,” said Alice. “We're very comfortable.”
“I'm very glad. I had Dan look, he's my housekeeper; he understands me better than my girls; he's like me, more. That's what makes us so fond of each other; it's a kind of personal vanity. But he has his good points, Dan has. He's very amiable, and I was too, at his age—and till I came here. But I'm not going to tell you of his good points; I dare say you've found them out. I'll tell you about his bad ones. He says you're very serious. Are you?” She pressed the girl's hand, which she had kept in hers, and regarded her keenly.
Alice dropped her eyes at the odd question. “I don't know,” she faltered. “Sometimes.”
“Well, that's good. Dan's frivolous.”
“Oh, sometimes—only sometimes!” he interposed.