not_."

Did any one ever hear of such a man? I understood his reasons well enough,
though he did not take the trouble to explain them: it was only
exclusiveness gone mad. And he prided himself upon his race and breeding,
and considered our American men boors!

After that I nearly gave up his case as hopeless, and devoted myself to
Kitty, whom I really believe the Jook did not know by sight after having
been for nearly a week in the same house with her.

Kitty once or twice mildly insinuated her desire to know him. "He has such
a nice face," she said plaintively, "and such lovely little curly brown
whiskers! He is the only man in the house worth looking at, but if I happen
to come up when he is talking to you, he instantly disappears. He must
think me _very_ ugly."

It was really very embarrassing to me, for of course I could not tell her
that the Jook had declined the honor of an introduction. I knew, as well as
if she had told me so, that Kitty in her secret heart accused me of a mean
and selfish desire to keep him all to myself, but I was obliged meekly to
endure the obloquy, undeserved as it was. Koenigin used to go into fits of
laughter at my dilemma, and just at this period my admiration of the Jook
went down to the lowest ebb. "He is a selfish, conceited creature!" I
exclaimed in my wrath. "I really believe he thinks that bewitching little
Kitty would fall in love with him forthwith if he submitted to an
introduction. Oh, I _do_ wish he knew what we thought of him! _Why_ doesn't
he listen outside of ventilators?"

"My dear," said Koenigin, still laughing, though sympathetic, "it strikes me
that we began by making rather a demi-god of the man, and are ending by
stripping him of even the good qualities which he probably does possess."

Well! things went on in this exasperating way for a week or so longer. Of
course I washed my hands of the Jook, for I was too much exasperated to be
even civil to him. Kitty was as bright and good-natured as ever, ready to
enjoy all the little pleasures that came in her way, though now and then I
fancied that I detected a stealthy, wistful look at the Jook's impassive
face.

It was lovely that day, but fearfully hot. The sun showered down its
burning rays upon the white Florida sands, the sky was one arch of
cloudless blue, and the water-oaks swung their moss-wreaths languidly over
the deserted streets. We had been dreaming and drowsing away the morning,
Koenigin, Kitty and I,