Do you hear ?' she added, waiting with some apparent inconsistency FOR an answer.
'I do hear you, ma'am,' replied Kate, 'with surprise--with greater surprise than I can express.' 'I have always considered you a particularly well-behaved young person for your station in life,' said Mrs Wititterly; 'and as you are a person of healthy appearance, and neat in your dress and so forth, I have taken an interest in you, as I do still, considering that I owe a sort of duty to that respectable old female, your mother.

For these reasons, Miss Nickleby, I must tell you once for all, and begging you to mind what I say, that I must insist upon your immediately altering your very forward behaviour to the gentleman who visit at this house.

It really is not becoming,' said Mrs Wititterly, closing her chaste eyes as she spoke; 'it is improper--quite improper.' 'Oh!' cried Kate, looking upwards and clasping her hands; 'is not this, is not this, too cruel, too hard to bear! Is it not enough that I should have suffered as I have, night and day; that I should almost have sunk in my own estimation from very shame of having been brought into contact with such people; but must I also be exposed to this unjust and most unfounded charge!' 'You will have the goodness to recollect, Miss Nickleby,' said Mrs Wititterly, 'that when you use such terms as "unjust", and "unfounded", you charge me, in effect, with stating that which is untrue.' 'I do,' said Kate with honest indignation.

'Whether you make this accusation of yourself, or at the prompting of others, is alike to me.

I say it IS vilely, grossly, wilfully untrue.