Plaisted felt too wrathy to reply, but he gave her a look that was meant to annihilate her; then turning to Gussie, who seemed to sympathize with him, said,

“I met those Desbrasy girls as I was coming up the street, and I do believe they saw it.  Confound the thing!  I remember now that they pulled out their handkerchiefs directly I bowed.  I daresay they were laughing at me!”

“Laughing! not they!” put in Dexie.  “They happened to see your feet, and were weeping with envy because theirs were so much bigger!  Don’t fret, Mr. Plaisted, you are not worth looking at without this finishing touch,” and with a scornful laugh she passed out of the room, slamming the door behind her.

Plaisted drew a sigh of relief when his tormentor vanished.

“Bless my soul! what a tongue that girl has,” and he wiped the perspiration from his brow.  “I hope she don’t often let her temper loose like that.”

“Well, no; but you have only yourself to blame for it, and I was almost going to say that it serves you right, too.”

“Why! how’s that?” said Plaisted, in surprise.

“Well, you know very well that you have tormented Dexie about Lancy Gurney till you have aroused her temper quite often; but you might have escaped if you had not insulted her just now.”

“Insult her!  How, pray?  I’m sure I did not.”

“You called her ‘Dexter,’ and that is a name she can’t stand from anybody.  I believe she would have taken off those rags for you if you had spoken to her as ‘Dexie,’ for she really is obliging, you know, though she did enjoy seeing you made an April fool.”

“Bless my soul!  I never noticed that I called her Dexter; and so that was the spark that caused the explosion?  Well, I shall not forget it in a hurry.”

“She generally succeeds in paying back, with double interest, anyone who uses that name to her, as I know to my sorrow,” said Gussie, with a shake of her head.  “Yet, after all, I don’t blame her much, either; but it is the one spot in her make-up that seems vulnerable.”

“Well, it is a good thing that I am going away so soon.  I expect she will make it hot for me while I am here.”

“Oh, no!  I guess you are safe, Mr. Plaisted.  The storm is over for this time, unless you care to brew another like it; the one word will do it, you know,” and she looked up with a smile.

“Thanks; I beg to be excused!  That one experience is enough to last me for one while.  Ugh!  I wonder if there was any disease on those dirty rags,” looking at his fingers and then on his coat, as if in doubt which would be the first to break out with it.

As he left the room to smooth out his ruffled plumage, holding his coat at arm’s length before him, the sounds of laughter in the next room greeted his ears.  As he listened a moment he heard Dexie relating the particulars of the scene in the parlor, and he shook his fist in the direction of the sound.  This relieved his feelings somewhat, and he vowed a hasty vow that, for the future, he would leave Dexie Sherwood and her doings alone.  He would have spared himself many unpleasant moments if he had kept his vow.