It was amusing, yet nevertheless puzzling, to hear this boyish young man
comment upon Susy's girlishness. And Clarence was serious, for he had
quite forgotten in Mrs. Peyton's presence the impression of superiority
which Susy had lately made upon him. But Mrs. Peyton returned to
the charge, or, rather, to an attack upon what she conceived to be
Clarence's old position.

"I suppose she does seem girlish compared to Mary Rogers, who is a much
more reserved and quiet nature. But Mary is very charming, Mr. Brant,
and I am really delighted to have her here with Susy. She has such
lovely dark eyes and such good manners. She has been well brought up,
and it is easy to see that her friends are superior people. I must
write to them to thank them for her visit, and beg them to let her stay
longer. I think you said you didn't know them?"

But Clarence, whose eyes had been thoughtfully and admiringly wandering
over every characteristic detail of the charming apartment, here raised
them to its handsome mistress, with an apologetic air and a "No" of such
unaffected and complete abstraction, that she was again dumbfounded.
Certainly, it could not be Mary in whom he was interested.

Abandoning any further inquisition for the present, she let the talk
naturally fall upon the books scattered about the tables. The young
man knew them all far better than she did, with a cognate knowledge of
others of which she had never heard. She found herself in the attitude
of receiving information from this boy, whose boyishness, however,
seemed to have evaporated, whose tone had changed with the subject, and
who now spoke with the conscious reserve of knowledge. Decidedly, she
must have grown rusty in her seclusion. This came, she thought bitterly,