Still looking at me, my cousin slowly drew from her bosom a huge,
jewelled watch, and displayed it for my inspection.

"We were matching mint-dates with shillings for father's watch; I won
it," she observed.

"Dorothy!" insisted the voice.

"Oh, la!" she cried, impatiently, "will you hush?"

"No, I won't!"

"Then our cousin Ormond will come up-stairs and give you what Paddy gave
the kettle-drum--won't you?" she added, raising her eyes to me.

"And what was that?" I asked, astonished.

Somebody on the landing above went off into fits of laughter; and, as I
reddened, my cousin Dorothy, too, began to laugh, showing an edge of
small, white teeth under the red lip's line.

"Are you vexed because we laugh?" she asked.

My tongue stung with a retort, but I stood silent. These Varicks might
forget their manners, but I might not forget mine.

She honored me with a smile, sweeping me from head to foot with her
bright eyes. My buckskins were dirty from travel, and the thrums in
rags; and I knew that she noted all these matters.