as a blackbird's plumage, and the moustache, which did not cover the
full red lips, matched the hair, save that it seemed of finer and softer
material. His brown eyes had the glow of health and good spirits in
them.

"Dear me!" Mrs. Rexford gave this involuntary exclamation of surprise;
then she turned inquiringly to the visitor. It was not in her nature to
regard him with an unfriendly eye; and as for Blue and Red, a spot of
warm colour had come into each of their sorrowful cheeks. They were too
well bred to look at each other or stare at the stranger, but there was
a flutter of pleased interest about the muscles of their rosy lips that
needed no expressive glances to interpret it.

To be sure, the next few minutes' talk rather rubbed the bloom off their
pleasure, as one rubs beauty off a plum by handling; but the plum is
still sweet; and the pleasure was still there, being composed purely of
the excitement of meeting a young human creature apparently so akin to
themselves, but different with that mysterious difference which nature
sets between masculine and feminine attributes of mind and heart.

The young man was an American. Any one experienced in American life
would have observed that the youth was a wanderer, his tricks of speech
and behaviour savouring, not of one locality, but of many. His accent
and manner showed it. He was very mannerly. He stated, without loss of
time, that, hearing that they had lately come to the country and had
some rooms in their house which they did not use, he had taken the
liberty of calling to see if they could let him a couple of rooms. He
was anxious, he said, to set up as a dentist, and had failed, so far, to
find a suitable place.