"I don't think, dear, that my feeling uneasy whenever John is out of my sight ought to count. John is a fool. Besides, girls that apply for situations are very mixed, whether telegraph or sorters. The most dangerous class of girl may apply. The safeguard in his case is that there is so little reserve in his nature. When his admiration is excited he always makes grimaces about them, and then I know who, at once. If taxed with them he always whistles popular airs and shuts one eye. 'Pop goes the Weasel' or 'Tarara-boomdeay.' But I try to believe he knows where to draw the line. This case is different." "I don't see the difference." "The girls are different. This Miss Sibyl What's-her-name...." "The one Titus admires so much is Judith. Sibyl's the Art Coiffure one, that wanted to do my hair like a picture of Titian's...." "Titian's mistress, I suppose. They did, then. Well!--I meant Judith. Don't you see how entirely different the cases are? Judith's position!--the publicity, dear!--the whole thing!..." "No!--I see no difference." "My dear!--what nonsense! Do you mean to say ... why, only look how he 'Miss Arkroyds' and 'Miss Sibyls' them! One judges from little things." "When we're here, Titus does. But when they're alone...?" "Well, of course! When they're alone, Mr. Challis _may_ call her Judith. I don't say he _does_, but suppose he does, what does it all amount to?... Now _don't_ be unreasonable, Marianne dear!" "I am _not_ unreasonable, Charlotte.... Nonsense! I'm _not_ crying about it. I wouldn't be such a fool. But all I can say is, if Titus wants to go away to his Judith, let him go? _I_ don't want to keep him, against his will.... What are those children at, in there?" At which point the conversation may stop. Incidentally, it helps us to see that Sibyl had lent herself to an effort, which seemed to her--as to us--a politic one, to induce Mrs. Alfred Challis to be a little more coming and tractable. She quite appreciated that friendship between her sister and Challis, if Marianne was included in it, would be a very different thing from the same thing, conditioned otherwise. And when she called at the Hermitage with her sister, she was strongly impressed that scandal, if any arose, would be the more dangerous unless Marianne could be induced to change her attitude, which suggested that of a civil tigress, with a grievance against the jungle. * * * * *