The Evil Genius: A Domestic Story — page 118: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

THE EVIL GENIUS. 107 with his hook baited, his line in the water, and strict injunctions to keep an eye on the float. They began to fish. Kitty looked at her companion, and looked away again in silence. By way of encouraging her to talk the good-natured lawyer alluded to what she had said when they parted over- night. ‘* You wanted to ask me something,” he reminded her. ** What is it ?” Without one preliminary word of warning to prepare him for She shock, Kitty answered: ‘‘ I want you to tell me what has be- come of papa, and why Syd has gone away and left me. You know who Syd is, don’t you ?” The one alternative left to Mr. Sarrazin was to plead igno- rance. While Kitty was instructing him on the subject of her governess he had time to consider what he should say to her next. The result added one more tothe lost opportunities of Mr. Sarrazin’s life. ‘*You see,” the child gravely continued, ‘‘ you are a clever man, and you have come here to advise mamma. I have got that much out of grandmamma, if I have got nothing else. Don’t look at me, look at your float. My papa has gone away, and Syd has left me without even saying good-bye, and we have given up our nice old house in Scotland and come to live here. I tell you I don’t understand it. If you see your float begin to tremble, and then give a little dip down as if it was going to sink, pull your line out of the water, you will most likely finda fish at the end of it. When I ask mamma what all this means, she says there is a reason, and 1am not old enough to under- stand it; and she looks unhappy and she gives me a kiss, and it ends in that way. You've got a bite; no you haven’t; it’s only a nibble; fish are so sly. And grandmamma is worse still. Sometimes she tells me I’m a spoiled child; and sometimes she says well-behaved little girls don’t ask questions. That’s non- sense—and I think it’s hard on me. You look uncomfortable. Is it my fault? I don’t want to bother you; I only want to know why Syd has gone away. When I was younger I might have thought the fairies had taken her. Oh, no! that won’t do any longer; ['m too old. Now tell me.” Mr. Sarrazin weakly attempted to gain time; he looked at his watch. Kitty looked over his shoulder. ‘‘ Oh, we needn’t be in a hurry; breakfast won't be ready for half an hour yet. Plenty of time to talk of Syd: go on.” Most unwisely (seeing that he had to deal with a clever child, and that child a girl) Mr. Sarrazin tried flat denial as a way out of the difficulty. He said: ‘‘I don’t know why she has gone away.” The next question followed instantly: ‘‘ Well, then, what do you think about it?” In sheer despair the persecuted friend said the first thing that came into his head. ‘*?T think she has gone to be married.” Kitty was indignant. ‘* Gone to be married, and not tell me!” she exclaimed. ‘‘ What do you mean by that ?” Mr. Sarrazin’s professional experience of women and marriages failed to supply him with an answer. In this difficulty he ex- COMMICLO© S (EC) im