“Of course you could, father. Oh, I wish to ask you if you know anything of the M.P. from Appleby?”
“He made a masterly speech last session, in favor of Peel’s ministry. I liked it then. I hevn’t one good word for it now.”
“He is a very fine looking man. I suppose he is wealthy. He lives in good style here.”
“I know nothing about his money. The De Burgs are a fine family--among the oldest in England--Cumberland, I believe, down Furness way. Why art thou bothering thysen about him?”
“He is one of Jane’s favorites. He goes to Ley-land’s house a deal. I was thinking of Katherine.”
“What about Katherine? What about Katherine?” the squire asked sharply.
“You know Katherine is beautiful, and this De Burg is very handsome--in his way.”
“Well, the De Burgs are of Norman descent and Stephen De Burg shows it. He has indeed the large, gray eyes of our own North Country, but his hair is black--very black--and his complexion is swarthy. However, he is tall and well-built, and remarkably graceful in speech and action--quite the young man to steal a girl’s heart away.”
“Hes he stolen any girl’s heart from thee?”
“Not he, indeed! I am Annis enough to keep what I win; but I was wondering if our little Kitty was a match for Stephen De Burg.”
“Tha needn’t worry thysen about Kitty Annis. I’ll warrant her a match for any man. Her mother says she hes a fancy for Harry Bradley, but I----”
“Nobody said he wasn’t a fine fellow, and there is not any need for thee to interrupt thy father in order to tell him that! Harry Bradley, indeed! I wouldn’t spoil any plan of De Burg’s to please or help Harry Bradley! Not I! Now I hope tha understands that! To-morrow thou can tell me about thy last goddess, and if she be worthy to sit after thy mother in Annis Court, I’ll help thee to get wedded to her gladly. For I’m getting anxious, Dick, about my grandsons and their sisters. I’d like to see them that are to come after me.”
Then Dick went away with a laugh, but as the father and son stood a moment hand-clasped, their resemblance was fitting and beautiful; and no one noticing this fact could wonder at the Englishman’s intense affection and anxious care for the preservation of his family type.
The squire then put out the candles and covered the fire just as he would have done at Annis and while he did so he pondered what Dick had told him and resolved to say nothing at all about it. “Then,” he reflected, “I shall get Katherine’s real opinions about De Burg. Women are so queer, they won’t iver tell you the truth about men unless they believe you don’t care what they think:--and I won’t tell Annie either. Annie would take to warning and watching, and, for anything I know, advising her to be faithful and true to her first love. Such simplicity! Such nonsense!”