She fixed her eyes for a while on this ornament, and then she looked at the glowing bed of anthracite coal in the grate.
"Did you ever see anything so hideous as that fire ?" she demanded.
"Did you ever see anything so--so affreux as--as everything ?" She spoke English with perfect purity; but she brought out this French epithet in a manner that indicated that she was accustomed to using French epithets.
"I think the fire is very pretty," said the young man, glancing at it a moment.

"Those little blue tongues, dancing on top of the crimson embers, are extremely picturesque.

They are like a fire in an alchemist's laboratory." "You are too good-natured, my dear," his companion declared.
The young man held out one of his drawings, with his head on one side.
His tongue was gently moving along his under-lip.

"Good-natured--yes.
Too good-natured--no." "You are irritating," said the lady, looking at her slipper.
He began to retouch his sketch.

"I think you mean simply that you are irritated." "Ah, for that, yes!" said his companion, with a little bitter laugh.