After
that----" he hesitated a moment, smiling not too pleasantly.
"After that," said Mount Dunstan, "the Deluge."
"Exactly. The Deluge which usually sweeps girls off their feet--but it
will not sweep her off hers. She will stand quite firm in the flood and
lose sight of nothing of importance which floats past."
Mount Dunstan took him up. He was sick of hearing the fellow's voice.
"There will be a good many things," he said; "there will be great
personages and small ones, pomps and vanities, glittering things and
heavy ones."
"When she sees what she wants," said Anstruthers, "she will hold out
her hand, knowing it will come to her. The things which drown will not
disturb her. I once made the blunder of suggesting that she might need
protection against the importunate--as if she had been an English girl.
It was an idiotic thing to do."
"Because?" Mount Dunstan for the moment had lost his head. Anstruthers
had maddeningly paused.
"She answered that if it became necessary she might perhaps be able to
protect herself. She was as cool and frank as a boy. No air pince about
it--merely consciousness of being able to put things in their right
places. Made a mere male relative feel like a fool.
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