Nobody knew how much joy those words of Lawrence Prescott's gave him, and how hard he tried to check the joy, because it should not matter to him except for Elmira's sake.
"Did you ever see a girl with such sweet ways as your sister ?" persisted Lawrence.
"Elmira is a good girl," Jerome admitted, confusedly.

He loved his sister, and would have defended her against depreciation with his life, but he compared inwardly, with scorn, her sweet ways with Lucina's.
"There isn't a girl her equal in this world," cried her lover, enthusiastically.

"Don't you say so, Jerome?
You're her brother, you know what she is.

Did you ever see anything like that cunning little face she makes, when she looks up at you ?" "Elmira's a good girl," Jerome repeated.
Lawrence had to be contented with that.

He went on, to tell Jerome his plans with regard to the engagement between himself and Elmira.
He was clearly much under the wise influence of his mother.