“So I was,” she answered, “until half an hour ago! But as he then expressed his determination to bathe, I left him to his own devices and came back to write my letters.” “Would he not have preferred your waiting on the sands till he could join you again?” “I did not ask him! I should think he would hardly care for me to watch him whilst bathing, and I am sure I should not consent to do so!” “But everybody does it here, Elinor, and if you did not care to go down to the beach, you might have waited for him on the Digue.” “My dear Margaret, I am not in the habit of dancing attendance upon men. It is their business to come after me! If Ralph is eager for another walk after his dip, he can easily call for me here!” “True! and he can as easily go for his walk with any stray acquaintance he may pick up on the sands!” “O! if he should prefer it, he is welcome to do so,” replied Elinor, resuming her scribbling. “My dear Elinor, I don’t think you quite understand Ralph! He has been terribly spoilt, you know, and when men have been accustomed to attention they will take it wherever they can get it! He has come over here expressly to be with you, so I think you should give him every minute of your time. Men are fickle creatures, my dear! It will take some time yet to despoil them of the idea that women were made for their convenience.” “I am afraid the man is not born yet for whose convenience I was made!” “Well! you know the old saying: ‘Most women can catch a man, but it takes a clever woman to keep him.’ I don’t mean to insinuate that you are in any danger of losing Ralph, but I think he’s quite worth keeping, and, I believe, you think so too!” “And I mean to keep him!” replied Miss Leyton, as she went on writing. Margaret did not venture to give her any further hints, but returned to her own room, and took another look through her spyglass. The bathers in whom she was interested had returned to their machines by this time, and presently emerged, “clothed and in their right minds,” Miss Brandt looking more attractive than before, with her long hair hanging down her back to dry. And then, that occurred which she had been anticipating. Captain Pullen, having taken a survey of the beach, and seeing none of his own party there, climbed with Harriet Brandt to where they were high and dry above the tide, and threw himself down on the hot, loose sand by her side, whilst the Baron and Baroness with a laughing injunction to the two young people, to take care of themselves, toiled up to the Digue and walked off in another direction. When they all met at _déjeuner_, she attacked her brother-in-law on the subject. “Have you been bathing all this while?” she said to him, “you must have stayed very long in the water!” “O! dear no!” he replied, “I wasn’t in above a quarter of an hour!” “And what have you been doing since?” “Strolling about, looking for you and Elinor!” said Captain Pullen. “Why the dickens didn’t you come out this lovely morning?”