nk that
you have much more pride. You always say that you have a sense of honour
which we can't understand. I should think that with all those advantages
you would be much too proud to insist upon our making allowances for
you."

"That's rather keen, you know," answered Brook, with a laugh. "All the
same, it's a woman's occupation to be good, and a man has a lot of other
things to do besides. That's the plain English of it. When a woman isn't
good she falls. When a man is bad, he doesn't--it's his nature."

"Oh--if you begin by saying that all men are bad! That's an odd way out
of it."

"Not at all. Good men and bad women are the exceptions, that's all--in
the way you mean goodness and badness."

"And how do you think I mean goodness and badness? It seems to me that
you are taking a great deal for granted, aren't you?"

"Oh, I don't know," said Brook, growing vague on a sudden. "Those are
rather hard things to talk about."

"I like to talk about them. How do you think I understand those two
words?"

"I don't know," repeated Johnstone, still more vaguely. "I suppose your
theory is that men and women are exactly equal, and that a man shouldn't
do what a woman ought not to do--and all that, you know. I don't exactly
know how to put it."

"I don't see why what is wrong for a woman should be right for a man,"
said Clare. "The law doesn't make any difference, does it? A man goes to
prison for stealing or forging, and so does a woman. I don't see why
society should make any distinction about other things. If there were a
law against flirting, it would send the men to prison just like the
women, wouldn't it?"

"What an awful idea!" laughed Brook.

"Yes, but in theory--"

"Oh, in theory it's all right. But in practice we men are not wrapped in
cotton and tied up with pink ribbons from the day we are born to the day
we are married. I--I don't exactly know how to explain what I mean, but
that's the general idea. Among poor people--I believe one mustn't say
the lower classes any more--well, with them it isn't quite the same. The
women don't get so much care and looking after, when they are young, you
know--that sort of thing. The consequence is, that there's much more
equality between men and women. I believe the women are worse, and the
men are better--it's my opinion, at all events. I dare say it isn't
worth much. It's only what I see at home, you know."

"But the working people don't flirt!" exclaimed Clare. "The