“I am sure you would like him! He is such a fine fellow! Not such a ‘beauty man’ as Ralph, perhaps, but quite as tall and stalwart! His last book was a tremendous success!” “Ralph has never mentioned him to me, though I knew he had a cousin of that name!” “Well!--if you won’t be offended at my saying so--Ralph has always been a little jealous of Anthony, at least so Arthur says. He outstripped him at school and college, and the feeling had its foundation there. And anyone might be jealous of him now! He has shewn himself to be a genius!” “I don’t like geniuses as a rule,” replied Elinor, “they are so conceited. I believe that is Bobby Bates sitting out there on the breakwater! I will go and see if he is still hungry!” “Give the poor boy a couple of francs to get himself a breakfast in one of the restaurants,” said Margaret, “he will enjoy having a little secret from his terrible Mamma!” She had not been alone long before the nurse came up to her, with the perambulator, piled up with toys, but no baby. Margaret’s fears were excited at once. “Nurse! nurse, what is the matter? Where is the baby?” she exclaimed in tones of alarm. “Nothing’s the matter, Ma’am! pray don’t frighten yourself!” replied the servant, “it’s only that the young ladies have got baby, and they’ve bought her all these toys, and sent me on to tell you that they would be here directly!” The perambulator was filled with expensive playthings useless for an infant of six months’ old. Dolls, woolly sheep, fur cats, and gaily coloured balls with a huge box of chocolates and caramels, were piled one on the top of the other. But Mrs. Pullen’s face expressed nothing but annoyance. “You had no right to let them take her, Nurse--you had no right to let the child out of your sight! Go back at once and bring her here to me! I am exceedingly annoyed about it!” “Here are the young ladies, Ma’am, and you had better lay your orders on them, yourself, for they wouldn’t mind me,” said the nurse, somewhat sullenly. In another minute Harriet Brandt, and Olga Brimont had reached her side, the former panting under the weight of the heavy infant, but with her face scarlet with the excitement of having captured her. “O! Miss Brandt!” cried Margaret, “you have given me such a fright! You must never take baby away from her nurse again, please! As I told you last night, she is afraid of strangers, and generally cries when they try to take her! Come to me, my little one!” she continued, holding out her arms to the child, “come to mother and tell her all about it!” But the baby seemed to take no notice of the fond appeal. It had its big eyes fixed upon Miss Brandt’s face with a half-awed, half-interested expression.