"Oh, yes!" she said. "Come--don't deny what was perfectly plain--it won't do." "Deny--?" "That you were desperately in love with me, and that I was your sweetheart, as the children say." And Mr. Ralph gently caressed the downy covering of his chin, and smiled. "What a conceited thing you are," said Fanny, laughing; "you are outrageous." And having uttered this opinion, Miss Fanny's eyes suddenly fell, and her merry cheek colored. The truth was simply, that Ralph had been a frank, good-humored, gallant boy, and the neighbors _had_ said, that he was Fanny's "sweetheart;" and the remembrance of this former imputation now embarrassed the nearly-grown-up young lady. No one could remain embarrassed in Mr. Ralph's society long however; there was so much careless ease in his demeanor, that it was contagious, and so Fanny in a moment had regained all her self-possession, and returned the languishing glances of her admirer with her habitual expression of satirical humor. "Yes, perfectly outrageous!" she said; "and college has positively ruined you--you cannot deny it." "Ruined me?" "Wholly." "On the contrary, it has greatly improved me, my dearest." And Ralph sat down on the trellised portico, stretching out his elegant rosetted shoes, and laughing. "I am not your dearest," said Fanny; "that is not my name." "You are mistaken! But come, sit by me: I'm just in the mood to talk." "No! I don't think I will." "Pray do." "No," said Fanny, shaking her head coquettishly, "I'll stand while your lordship discourses." "You positively shan't!" And with these words, the young man grasped Miss Fanny's long streaming hair-ribbon, and gently drew it toward him, laughing. Fanny cried out. Ralph laughed more than ever. There was but one alternative left for the young girl. She must either see her elegantly bound up raven locks deprived of their confining ribbon, and so fall in wild disorder, or she must obey the command of the enemy, and sit quietly beside him. True, there was the third course of becoming angry, and raising her head with dignified hauteur. But this course had its objections--it would not do to quarrel with her cousin and former playmate immediately upon his return; and again the movement of the head, which we have indicated, would have been attended by consequences exceedingly disastrous. Therefore, as Ralph continued to draw toward him gently the scarlet ribbon, with many smiles and admiring glances, Miss Fanny gradually approached the seat, and finally sat down. "There, sir!" she said, pouting, "I hope you are satisfied!" "Perfectly; the fact is, my sweet Fanny, I never was anything else _but_ satisfied with _you_! I always was fascinated with you." "That's one of the things which you were taught at college, I suppose." "What?" "Making pretty speeches." "No, they didn't teach that, by Jove! Nothing but wretched Latin, Greek and Mathematics--things, evidently, of far less importance than the art you mention."