Patty looked about her curiously. The arbor was half a dozen feet across, with wall and ceiling of green boughs. It was a grotto dug in a huge emerald. On one side an opening had been cut in the foliage, so as to afford a view of the river, and the mountains beyond, now blue and purple with autumn hazes. The castle was securely railed in, and furnished with three or four rustic seats, besides a small table, or rather shelf, supported by a living bough. Upon this lay an open book, in which the lawyer had apparently been reading. "I trust my cigar does not trouble you," he said: "I'll drop it if it does." "Not in the least." Magnetism by induction is a phenomenon no less interesting in the intellectual than in the physical world. The restless mood of Patty, her defensive attitude, began to re-act upon her companion. She unconsciously was defending herself from herself, rather than from him; while he was at once puzzled and offended by her repellence. Patty was more affected by this meeting with her lover than she realized, and her nature instinctively guarded itself against any betrayal of emotion. She affected, as many another has done, to cover her concern by a mask of indifference, and began to banter gayly. "I would on no account have come here, had I known you were at home," she said. "Um,"--he returned. "You and truth have one thing in common." "I am delighted to hear it. What may that be?" "You are both very coy when sought, and yet will often show your faces unasked." "Thanks! That is, then, our only resemblance?" "Oh, no! You both can say extremely disagreeable things." "And both are very unpleasant generally, I suppose you'd like to add." "By no means. That would be impolite to my guest." "I am glad if you keep a semblance even of good manners." "Manners?" he said reflectively. "I dimly remember having had something of the kind in my youth, but I long since threw them aside. I thought them out of fashion." "Is that the reason you have not asked me to sit down?" "I did not know as you would stay long enough to make it an object." "I can go, of course, if you wish it." "Don't on my account, I beg," he said coolly. "I am charmed to have you here. I should have invited you, had I supposed you'd accept." "You have, hundreds of times." "Have I? We say so many of those things for politeness' sake, and forget them instantly." She tossed her head, and took up the book he had been reading. "'Thomas Putnam,'" she read upon the fly-leaf. "What an extremely homely name!" she commented. "A matter of taste," he replied. "I confess that Patience Putnam would please me better." "You are very rude!" she said, angry that she needs must blush. "Am I? You may have an opportunity to polish my manners whenever you choose." "They need it badly enough; but some materials are so coarse-grained, that they will take no polish. Will you please talk sensibly for a few moments?"