In youth one has a great horror of belonging to the tiresome side.
Cleverness counts for so much, and it is hard in early life to put
goodness first! One does not realize the beauty of the strength and
principle shown by the tiresome people, and it takes real principle to
show one's colours in ordinary talk.

I once heard of an earnest religious girl who was asked to a pleasant
country house, and who thought she might lawfully take a holiday, as it
were, and be like other people while away from home; so she laughed and
talked with the rest and kept her real life to herself. On the last night,
a girl she had taken a fancy to came into her room, and, after a little
time, said, "It has been so nice meeting you, but I rather wish your
sister had come too." "But I have no sister." "Why, I have heard so much
of her, and of how good she is, and though you wouldn't think it, I have
been bothered about things lately, and when I heard your name, I thought
it was she who was coming here, and I planned to have a talk with
her:--you're awfully nice, but of course one wouldn't talk about those
things to you any more than to any of the rest of us."

I leave you to fancy the resolutions that girl made, to show her colours
for the future!

And then it does not seem to matter--no _harm_ is being said or done,
Gallio is generally an excellent person, and really "So-and-so" was
unnecessarily tiresome in raising the point; and then, again, one's
indolence bids one be quiet and vote neither way.

But every vote on the right side counts; it alters the balance of the
general feeling, and probably helps some one looking on,--some one who
never let out that they needed or cared for any help. "Right!" has a big