And perhaps they would run races, or perhaps explore, or perhaps
tell her a story, and Rosalie's spirits would come bursting out
from their dulness and all would be splendid.

Not so when on the walks men, from being talked of, began to be
met.

There were at Robert's Grammar School certain young men who were
in no way connected with the school but were the "private pupils"
of the headmaster and were reading for the universities. One day
Hilda started for the walk in her church hat and Flora also in her
church hat and her church gloves. They walked very fast; Rosalie
could hardly keep up. And then at a corner of a lane they suddenly
started to walk very slowly indeed, and suddenly again at a stile,
two of these young men were met.

The young men raised their hats much farther than Rosalie had ever
seen a man raise his hat and one of them said, "Well, you have come
then?"

Flora said, "Well, we just happened to be strolling along this
way." Then she said, "You needn't imagine we came to see you!"
which Rosalie thought very rude; but the young men seemed to like
it and all of them laughed a great deal.

Presently they all started to walk together, Hilda and Flora in
the middle and one of the young men on either side. The walk lasted
much later than the walks usually lasted and the whole way Rosalie
trailed along behind; and on the whole afternoon the only words
addressed to Rosalie by her sisters came just as, the young men