‘Oh, that’s this lady, here!’ cried Olive.  ’She says she cannot read in our room on account of my chattering, so she comes in here to continue her schooling.  I should’ve thought that she had had enough of it; and she makes the place in such a mess with bits of paper.  Barnes is always tidying up after her.’

Alice laughed constrainedly, and taking the cream-coloured dress out of the maid’s hands, Olive explained why it suited her.  Violet had much to say concerning the pink trimming, and the maid referred to her late mistress’s wardrobes.  The ruby dress, however, drew forth many little cries of admiration.  Then an argument was started concerning the colour of hair, and, before the glass with hairpins and lithe movements of the back and loins, the girls explained their favourite coiffures.

’But, Alice, you haven’t opened your lips, and you haven’t shown me your dresses.’

’Barnes will show you my dinner-frocks, but I don’t think as much about what I wear as Olive does.’

Violet quickly understood, but, with clever dissimulation, she examined and praised the black silk trimmed with red ribbons.  ’She’s angry because we didn’t look at her dresses first,’ Olive interjected; and Violet came to Alice’s rescue with a question:  ’Had they heard lately of Lord Kilcarney?’ Olive protested that she would sooner die than accept such a little red-haired thing as that for a husband, and Violet laughed delightedly.

’Anyway, you haven’t those faults to find with a certain officer, now stationed at Gort, who, if report speaks truly, is constantly seen riding towards Brookfield.’

‘Well, what harm is there in that?’ said Olive, for she did not feel quite sure in her mind if she should resent or accept the gracious insinuation.

’None whatever; I only wish such luck were mine.  What with the weather, and papa’s difficulties with his herdsmen and his tenants, we haven’t seen a soul for the last month.  I wish a handsome young officer would come galloping up our avenue some day.’

Deceived, Olive abandoned herself to the plausive charm of Violet’s manner, and at different times she spoke of her flirtation, and told many little incidents concerning it—­what he had said to her, how she had answered him, and how, the last time they had met, he had expressed his sorrow at being unable to call to see her until the end of the week.

‘He is shooting to-day at the Lawlers’,’ said Violet.

‘That I’m sure he’s not,’ said Olive, with a triumphant toss of her fair head; ‘for I forbade him to go there.’

Violet smiled, and Olive insisted on an explanation being given.

‘Well,’ exclaimed the girl, more bluntly than she had yet spoken, ’because as we were coming here we saw him walking along one of the covers.  There were a lot of gentlemen, and, just fancy, that dreadful woman, Mrs. Lawler, was with them, marching along, just like a man, and a gun under her arm.’