Her answers to the kindness and the remarks of her companions were at

first unconsciously given. They had travelled half their way along the

rough lane, before she was quite awake to what they said. She then

found them talking of "Frederick."

"He certainly means to have one or other of those two girls, Sophy,"

said the Admiral; "but there is no saying which. He has been running

after them, too, long enough, one would think, to make up his mind.

Ay, this comes of the peace. If it were war now, he would have settled

it long ago. We sailors, Miss Elliot, cannot afford to make long

courtships in time of war. How many days was it, my dear, between the

first time of my seeing you and our sitting down together in our

lodgings at North Yarmouth?"

"We had better not talk about it, my dear," replied Mrs Croft,

pleasantly; "for if Miss Elliot were to hear how soon we came to an

understanding, she would never be persuaded that we could be happy

together. I had known you by character, however, long before."

"Well, and I had heard of you as a very pretty girl, and what were we

to wait for besides? I do not like having such things so long in hand.

I wish Frederick would spread a little more canvass, and bring us home

one of these young ladies to Kellynch. Then there would always be

company for them. And very nice young ladies they both are; I hardly

know one from the other."

"Very good humoured, unaffected girls, indeed," said Mrs Croft, in a

tone of calmer praise, such as made Anne suspect that her keener powers

might not consider either of them as quite worthy of her brother; "and

a very respectable family. One could not be connected with better

people. My dear Admiral, that post! we shall certainly take that

post."

But by coolly giving the reins a better direction herself they happily

passed the danger; and by once afterwards judiciously putting out her

hand they neither fell into a rut, nor ran foul of a dung-cart; and

Anne, with some amusement at their style of driving, which she imagined

no bad representation of the general guidance of their affairs, found

herself safely deposited by them at the Cottage.




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