"I could, but I do not wish it," said Hubert. "It is so very becoming," he added in a low voice to Margaret, "ladies with such beautiful arms should always carve."
"I wish you would help me, instead of talking nonsense," said Margaret, who was colouring very much under the impression that two or three persons had their eyes fixed on her, "you see how disagreeable it is to me."
Before she had done speaking, Mr. Haveloc had taken the knife and fork from her hands.
"That's right," said Harriet, speaking across to Mr. Haveloc.
"I do wish you would go to the ball, Harriet," said Hubert.
"Don't you really go the ball?" echoed Mr. Elliot, the hero before mentioned, "how can you be so cruel as to remain at home?"
"Yes--you wish to dance with me, don't you?" said Harriet, turning suddenly round upon him. "I'll tell you why I don't go. I detest dancing; unless one could hire a partner as they do in Flanders, and the man felt his value to be one kreutzer, and no more." A good many men can get on very well with people who are exactly like every body they are in the habit of meeting, but any thing like a character puts them quite out. So Mr. Elliot got up a little laugh and was silent. At last, he enquired of Harriet what amusement she preferred to dancing.
"Pistol shooting," said Harriet. "There's the man with the champagne. Don't you take any?"
"A hay-stack, I suppose. Tell somebody to bring me the cream."
"Have you heard Fornasari?" asked Mr. Elliot.
"Oh, very fine really! You would be delighted!"
"What is fine?" asked Harriet impatiently. "I want to know the sort of singer; and you call him fine!"
Mr. Elliot never having heard of a definition, was naturally silent under this attack.
"Have you been to town lately?" asked Harriet.
"The marble from Xanthis in the British Museum?"
"I don't quite--I believe they took me once to the Museum when I was a boy in the Christmas holidays, along with the pantomimes."
"Ah! it is not now in the same place with the pantomimes; we have changed all that," said Harriet. "I say, Hubert, my Skye terrier caught a rat yesterday out walking."
"No, did he? I wish I had been there," said Hubert, "Why did not you let me walk with you?"
"It was before you came home. Don't you know you were only just in time for dinner."