A swift shadow of surprise showed itself in Dolly's eyes, and died out almost at the same moment. “Are you ready?” she said, briefly. “If you are, we will go down-stairs.” There was a simultaneous cry of admiration from them all when the two entered the parlor below, and Miss Mollie appeared attired in all her glory. “Here she is!” exclaimed 'Toinetté and Aimée, together. “Just the right shade,” was Phil's immediate comment. “Catches the lights and throws out her coloring so finely. Turn round, Mollie.” And Mollie turned round obediently, a trifle abashed by her own gorgeousness, and looking all the lovelier for her momentary abasement. Griffith was delighted. He went to her and kissed her, and praised her with the enthusiastic frankness which characterized all his proceedings with regard to the different members of the family of his betrothed. He was as proud of the girl's beauty as if she were a sister of his own. Then the object of their mutual admiration knelt down upon the hearth-rug, before Tod, who, attired in ephemeral splendor, had stopped in his tour across the room to stare up with bright baby wonder at the novelty of warm, rich color which had caught his fancy. “I must kiss Tod,” she said; no ceremony was ever considered complete, and no occasion perfect, unless Tod had been kissed, and so taken into the general confidence. “Tod, come and be kissed.” But, being a young gentleman of by no means effusive nature, Tod preferred to remain stationary, holding to the toe of his red shoe and gazing upward with an expression of approbation and indifference commingled, which delighted his feminine admirers beyond expression. “He knows it is something new,” said 'Toinette. “See how he looks at it.” Whereupon, of course, there was a chorus of delighted acquiescence, and Aunt Dolly must needs go down upon the hearthrug, too. “Has Aunt Mollie got a grand new dress on, Beauty?” she said, glowing with such pretty, womanly adoration of this atom of all-ruling baby-dom, as made her seem the very cream and essence of lovableness and sweet nonsense. And then, Master Tod, still remaining unmoved by adulation, and still regarding his small circle of tender sycophants with round, liquid, baby eyes serene, and dewy red lips apart, was so effective in this one of his many entrancing moods, that he was no longer to be resisted, and so was caught up and embraced with ecstasy. “He notices everything,” cries Aunt Dolly; “and I 'm sure he understands every word he hears. He is _so_ different from other babies.” Different! Of course he was different. There was not one of them but indignantly scouted at the idea of there ever having before existed such a combination of infantile gifts and graces. The most obtuse of people could not fail to acknowledge his vast superiority, in spite of their obtuseness. “But,” remarked Aimée, with discretion, “you had better stand up, Mollie, or you will crush your front breadths.”