"Afraid of me! Why?"
"Well, I understand that you boxed her ears shamefully."
A merry peal of laughter greeted my words.
"It was too bad; you were very harsh," said Louise, soberly.
"I could not help it; she was an ugly, awkward thing," said Louison. "I could have pulled her nose."
"And it seems you called her a géante also," I said. "She was quite offended."
"It was a compliment," said the girl. "She was an Amazon—like the count's statue of Jeanne d'Arc."
"Poor thing! she could not help it," said Louise.
"Well," said Louison, with a sigh of regret, "if I ever see her again I shall give her a five-franc piece."
There was a moment of silence, and she broke it.
"I hope, this afternoon, you will let me ride that horse," said she.
"On one condition," was my reply.
"And it is—?"
