his head.

"And how do your foreigners behave themselves, Mrs. Blake?" inquired the
neighbor.

"Like French emmy-grays, to be sure. I told Blake when he would have
them to lodge in the house, that we are a respectable family. But he is
master, and their lordships has money in their purses."

"French lordships!" exclaimed the neighbor. "Whether they calls
themselves counts or markises, what's their nobility worth? Nothing!"

"The Markis de Ferrier," retorted Mrs. Blake, nettled by a liberty taken
with her lodgers which she reserved for herself, "is a gentleman if he
is an emmy-gray, and French. Blake may be master in his own house, but
he knows landed gentry from tinkers--whether they ever comes to their
land again or not."

"Well, then," soothed her gossip, "I was only thinking of them French
that comes over, glad to teach their betters, or even to work with
their hands for a crust."

"Still," said Mrs. Blake, again giving rein to her prejudices, "I shall
be glad to see all French papists out of St. Bat's. For what does
scripture say?--'Touch not the unclean thing!' And that servant-body,
instead of looking after her little missus, galloping out of the close
on some bloody errand!"

"You ought to be thankful, Mrs. Blake, to have her out of the way,
instead of around our children, poisoning their hinfant minds! Thank God