Page:Alice Lauder.pdf/202

tance to discern one from the other, or to distinguish the engaged one from the sister who was still at liberty. The engaged Miss Klingender seemed to cling to that blessed estate through good report and evil report, merely as a matter of conviction and inward principle—the object of her engagement, if one may speak scientifically, being a movable quantity, and liable to be changed according to the fluctuations of the seasons, like a winter mantle or a thin pair of shoes. After a short acquaintance, however, observant strangers began to notice that there was a difference, and that the quieter, soberer, and less feathery-fringed and yellow-crested of the two girls was the born coquette; while the superficially brighter and more frivolous was really the business woman of the family, and the strong spirit who managed the entertainments, household affairs, and social functions, with such admirable results. If there was a whisper of flirtation or fastness about the reputation of these charming sisters, it was due to the airy manner, or rather mannerisms, of the useful one; the mild, angelic smiles of the younger girl being invariably bestowed on the object of her affections (for the time being), and on him alone. There was, however, a whisper going round well-informed circles that Miss