CHAPTER VI.
THE LITTLE BARONET--DOLLS--CINDER PARCELS--THE OLD GENTLEMAN NEXT DOOR--THE ZOOLOGICAL GARDENS The next time I saw Sir Lionel was about two days afterwards, in the afternoon, when the elder girls had gone for a drive in the carriage with Aunt Maria, and the others, with myself, were playing in the garden; Miss Blomfield being seated on a camp-stool reading a terrible article on "Rabies" in the Medical Dictionary.
Rubens and I had strolled away from the rest, and I was exercising him in some of his tricks when the little baronet passed us with his accustomed air of mingled melancholy, dignity, and self-consciousness.
I was a good deal fascinated by him.

Beauty has a strong attraction for children, and the depth of his weeds invested him with a melancholy interest, which has also great charms for the young.

Then, to crown all, he mourned the loss of a young mother--and so did I.I involuntarily showed off Rubens as he approached, and he lingered and watched us.

By a sort of impulse I took off my little hat, as I had been taught to do to strangers.

He lifted his with a dismal grace and moved on.
But as he walked about I could see that he kept looking to where Rubens and I played upon the grass, and at last he came and sat down near us.
"Is that your dog ?" he asked.
"Yes he's my dog," I answered.
"He seems very clever," said Sir Lionel.