Their own notion
seems to be to shake the rattle-box, and awaken a laugh. I am not a
baby, nor am I seeking amusement."
He glanced curiously at her book. "And yet you condescend to read love
stories," he said, smiling. "I expected to discover a treatise on
philosophy."
"I read whatever I chance to get my hands on, here in Glencaid," she
retorted, "just as I converse with whoever comes along. I am hopeful
of some day discovering a rare gem hidden in the midst of the trash. I
am yet young."
"You are indeed young," he said, quietly, "and with some of life's
lessons still to learn. One is that frankness is not necessarily
flippancy, nor honesty harshness. Beyond doubt much of what you said
regarding ordinary social conversation is true, yet the man is no more
to be blamed than the woman. Both seek to be entertaining, and are to
be praised for the effort rather than censured. A stranger cannot
instinctively know the likes and dislikes of one he has just met; he
can feel his way only by commonplaces. However, if you will offer me a
topic worthy the occasion, in either philosophy, science, or
literature, I will endeavor to feed your mind.
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