"And yet," thought Florence to herself, "I am the only girl present properly dressed for the occasion.  Surely Sir John, a thorough gentleman as he is, must notice that fact.  I wonder what it can mean. Why does he devote himself to Mary?  Am I wrong from first to last?  Do girls who are real ladies think little or nothing about their dress? Would Sir John have been more inclined to be pleasant to me if Aunt Susan had never interfered?"