"I knew she would. She had compunctions of conscience letting
him hang round you, until she told me; and then she had awful
gripes because she had told, and had to confess to YOU!"

He continued in a different tone: "Essie, I have missed your mother
a long while, and nobody knows how that kind of missing hurts;
but it seems to me I never missed her as I do to-day. I need her
to advise me about you, Essie. It is like this: I don't want to be
a stern parent any more than you want to elope on a rope ladder.
We have got to look at this thing together, my dear little girl,
and try to--to trust each other."

"Don't you think, papa," said Esther, smiling rather tremulously,
"that we would better wait, before we have all these solemn preparations,
until we know surely whether Mr. Lossing wants me?"

"Don't you know surely?"

"He has never said anything of--of that--kind."

"Oh, he is in love with you fast enough," growled Armorer; but a smile
of intense relief brightened his face. "Now, you see, my dear,
all I know about this young man, except that he wants my daughter--
which you will admit is not likely to prejudice me in his favor--
is that he is mayor of this town and has a furniture store ----"

"A manufactory; it is a very large business!"

"All right, manufactory, then; all the same he is not a brilliant