I am quite beneath your touch, sir!' 'No, no, that's coming it much too strong!' he said. 'When I have it on excellent authority that your uncle is a General!' For a moment she suspected him of mockery; then she met his eyes, and realized that the laughter in them was at a joke he believed she would appreciate. She said, with a quivering lip: 'D-did Mrs Underhill say that? Oh, dear! I shouldn't think you could possibly believe that she didn't learn about my uncle from me, but I promise you she didn't!' 'Another of my misapprehensions! I had naturally supposed that you introduced him into every conversation, and had been wondering how it came about that you forgot to mention him when we first met.