One might be proud."
"There you are again!" Bernard exclaimed. "You won't even let me praise
your modesty."
"I would rather you should rebuke my pride."
"That is so humble a speech that it leaves no room for rebuke."
For a moment Miss Vivian said nothing.
"Men are singularly base," she declared presently, with a little smile.
"They don't care in the least to say things that might help a person.
They only care to say things that may seem effective and agreeable."
"I see: you think that to say agreeable things is a great misdemeanor."
"It comes from their vanity," Miss Vivian went on, as if she had not
heard him. "They wish to appear agreeable and get credit for cleverness
and tendresse, no matter how silly it would be for another person to
believe them."
Bernard was a good deal amused, and a little nettled.
"Women, then," he said, "have rather a fondness for producing a bad
impression--they like to appear disagreeable?"
His companion bent her eyes upon her fan for a moment as she opened and
closed it.
"They are capable of resigning themselves to it--for a purpose."
Bernard was moved to extreme merriment.
"For what purpose?"
"I don't know that I mean for a purpose," said Miss Vivian; "but for a
necessity.
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