er, but she only
said, in her little cracked voice (and here Willie began to laugh
immoderately), that she was the _incognito_, and that it was the part of
a true and gallant knight to discover the name of his fair lady. Oh, I
promise you she was a case! Why, you never heard anyone talk so
ridiculously as she did! I asked her how old she was. Mother said that
was very impolite, but it's the only uncivil thing I did or said, as the
old lady would testify herself if she were here."

"How old is she?" said Gerty.

"Sixteen."

"Why, Willie, what do you mean?"

"That's what she told me," said Willie; "and a true and gallant knight
must believe his fair lady."

"Poor body!" said True; "she's childish!"

"No, she isn't Uncle True," said Willie; "you'd think so part of the
time, to hear her run on with her nonsense; and then, the next minute,
she'd speak as sensible as anybody, and say how much obliged she was to
me for being willing to put myself to so much trouble for the sake of an
old woman like her. Just as we turned into Beacon Street we met a school
of girls, blooming beauties, handsome enough to kill, my old lady called
them; and when they came in sight, she seemed to take it for granted I
should get away from her, and run after some of them. But she held on
with a vengeance! It's lucky I had no idea of forsaking her, for it
would have been impossible! Some of them stopped and stared at us--of
course I didn't care how much they stared; but she seemed to think I
should be terribly mortified; and when we had passed them all, she
complimented me again and again on my spirit of conformity, her
favourite expression."

Here Willie was out of breath. True clapped him upon the shoulder. "Good
boy, Willie?" said he, "clever boy! You always look out for the old
folks, and that's right. Respect for the aged is a good thing; though
your grandfather says it's very much out of fashion."

"I don't know much about fashion, Uncle True; but I should think it was
a pretty mean sort of a boy that would see an old lady get one fall on
the ice, and not save her from another by seeing her safe home."

"Willie's always kind to everybody," said Gerty.

"Willie's either a hero," said the boy, "or else he has got two pretty
good friends--I rather think it's the latter. But, come, Gerty, Charles
the Twelfth is waiting for us, and we must study as much as we can
to-night. We may not have another chance very soon, for Mr. Bray isn't
wel