Definition of "divertingly"

'Curse him, the dog! Never mind, Ursula, you'll be all right now we're here. No hat?' he asked divertingly, looking at her sunburnt face.

1907, Barbara Baynton, edited by Sally Krimmer and Alan Lawson, Human Toll (Portable Australian Authors: Barbara Baynton), St Lucia: University of Queensland Press, published 1980, page 234