the implication that she was looking on
the man as a husband. Adela heard the remarks, and flushed likewise. Mrs.
Chump eyed them both. "It's for the money o' the man," she soliloquized
aloud, as her fashion was. Adela jumped up, and with an easy sprightly
posture of her fair, commonly studious person, and natural run of notes
"Oh!" she cried, "I begin to feel what it is to be like a live fish on
the fire, frying, frying, frying! and if he can keep his Christian
sentiments under this infliction, what a wonderful hero he must be! What
a hot day!"

She moved swiftly to the door, and flung it open. A sight met her eyes at
which she lost her self-possession. She started back, uttering a soft
cry.

"Ah! aha! oh!" went the bitter ironic drawl of Mr. Pericles, whose sharp
glance had caught the scene as well.

Emilia came forward with a face like sunset. Diplomacy, under the form of
Wilfrid Pole, kicked its heels behind, and said a word or two in a tone
of false cheerfulness.

"Oh! so!" Mr. Pericles frowned, while Emilia held her hand out to him.
"Yeas! You are quite well? H'm! You are burnt like a bean--hein? I shall
ask you what you have been doing, by and by."

Happily for decency, Mrs. Chump had not participated in the fact
presented by ocular demonstration. She turned about comfortably to greet
Wilfrid, uttering the inspired remark: "Ye look red from a sly kiss!"

"For one?" said he, sharpening his blunted wits on this dull instrument.

The ladies talked down their talk. Then Wilfrid and Mr. Pericles
interchanged quasi bows.

"Oh, if he doesn't show his upper teeth like an angry cat, or a leopard
I've seen!" cried Mrs. Chump in Adela's ear, designating Mr. Pericles.
"Does he know Mr. Wilfrud's in the British army, and a new lieuten't,
gazetted and all?"

Mr. Pericles certainly did not look pleasantly upon Wilfrid: Emilia
received his unconcealed wrath and spite.

"Go and sing a note!" he said.

"At the piano?" Emilia quietly asked.

"At piano, harp, what you will--it is ze voice I want."

Emilia pitched her note high from a full chest and with glad bright eyes,
which her fair critics thought just one degree brazen, after the
revelation in the doorway.

Mr. Pericles listened; wearing an aching expression, as if he were
sending one eye to look up into his brain for a judgement disputed in
that sovereign seat.

Still she held on, and then gave a tremulous, rich, contralto note.

"Oh! the human voice!" cr