The whole habit is a relic of barbarism.
Probably, in the early ages, only the great had cups to drink from. These
few, to protect themselves from their envious and covetous brethren,
stuck out their little fingers to ward off possible assaults upon their
porcelain property. This ingrained impulse the ages have been unable to
eradicate. Hence we find the Little Finger Crooks upon the earth to-day."
"What an ingenious boy you are," said Patty, looking at her cousin with
mock admiration. "How did you ever think of all that?"
"That isn't ingenuity, miss, it's historic research, and you'll probably
find that Florence Douglass can trace her ancestry right back to the
aforesaid barbarians."
"I suppose most of us are descended from primitive people," said Marian.
And then the entrance of Elsie Morris and her brother Guy put an end to
the discussion of little fingers.
"I'm so glad to see you," said Patty, welcoming her callers. "Come right
into the library, you are our first real guests."
"Then I think we ought to have the Prize for Promptness," said Elsie, as
she took off her wraps. "But don't you count Frank and Marian?"
"Not as guests," replied Patty; "they're relatives, and you know your
relatives--"
"Are like the poor," interrupted Frank, "because they're always
with you."
"Then, we are really your first callers?" said Guy Morris.
"No, not quite," said Patty, laughing. "I spoke too hastily when I said
that, and forgot entirely a very distinguished personage who visited me
this morning.
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