It required very keen attention to keep the run of either the captain's or the lieutenant's English.

A few days before she had laughed at what seemed to be a funny story, and had later learned that it was an announcement of the death of the lieutenant's grandmother.

To-day she confined her answers to inarticulate murmurs which might be interpreted as either assents or negations as the case required.
Constance, however, was buoyantly at her ease; she loved nothing better than the excitement of a difficult situation.

As she bridged over pauses, and unobtrusively translated from the officer's English into real English, she at the same time kept a watchful eye on the water.

She had her own reasons for wishing to detain the callers until her father's return.
Presently she saw, across the lake, a yellow sailboat float out from the shadow of Monte Maggiore and head in a long tack toward Villa Rosa.