"Abaronetsignsuchapetition！"exclaimedTrefusis。"Ididnotthinkofaskingyou。Ionlyshowittoyouasaninterestinghistoricaldocument,containingtheautographsofafewartistsandpoets。ThereisDonovanBrown'sforexample。Itwashewhosuggestedthepetition,whichisnotlikelytodomuchgood,asthethingcannotbedoneinanysuchfashionHowever,IhavepromisedBrowntogetasmanysignaturesasIcan;soyoumayaswellsignit,Erskine。Itsaysnothinginblankverseabouttheholinessofslayingatyrant,butitisastepintherightdirection。Youwillnotstickatsuchatrifle——unlessthereviewshavefrightenedyou。Come,yournameandaddress。"
　　Erskineshookhishead。
　　"Doyouthenonlycommityourselftorevolutionarysentimentswhenthereisachanceofwinningfameasapoetbythem？"
　　"Iwillnotsign,simplybecauseIdonotchooseto,"saidErskinewarmly。
　　"Mydearfellow,"saidTrefusis,almostaffectionately,"ifamanhasaconsciencehecanhavenochoiceinmattersofconviction。
　　Ihavereadsomewhereinyourbookthatthemanwhowillnotshedhisbloodforthelibertyofhisbrothersisacowardandaslave。Willyounotshedadropofink——myink,too——fortherightofyourbrotherstotheworkoftheirhands？Iatfirstsightdidnotcaretosignthispetition,becauseIwouldassoonpetitionatigertosharehispreywithmeasourrulerstorelaxtheirgripofthestolenlabortheyliveon。ButDonovanBrownsaidtome,'Youhavenochoice。Eitheryoubelievethatthelaborershouldhavethefruitofhislabororyoudonot。Ifyoudo,putyourconvictiononrecord,evenifitshouldbeasuselessasPilate'swashinghishands。'SoIsigned。"
　　"DonovanBrownwasright,"saidSirCharles。"Iwillsign。"Andhedidsowithaflourish。
　　"Brownwillbedelighted,"saidTrefusis。"Iwillwritetohimto—daythatIhavegotanothergoodsignatureforhim。"
　　"Twomore,"saidSirCharles。"Youshallsign,Erskine;hangmeifyoushan't！Itisonlyagainstrascalsthatrunawaywithoutpayingtheirmentheirwages。"
　　"Orthatdon'tpaytheminfull,"observedTrefusis,withacurioussmile。"Butdonotsignifyoufeeluncomfortableaboutit。"
　　"Ifyoudon'tsignafterme,youareasneak,Chester,"saidSirCharles。
　　"Idon'tknowwhatitmeans,"saidErskine,wavering。"Idon'tunderstandpetitions。"
　　"Itmeanswhatitsays;youcannotbeheldresponsibleforanymeaningthatisnotexpressedinit,"saidTrefusis。"Butnevermind。Youmistrustmealittle,Ifancy,andwouldrathernotmeddlewithmypetitions;butyouwillthinkbetterofthatasyougrowusedtome。Meanwhile,thereisnohurry。Don'tsignyet。"
　　"Nonsense！Idon'tdoubtyourgoodfaith,"saidErskine,hastilydisavowingsuspicionswhichhefeltbutcouldnotaccountfor。
　　"Heregoes！"Andhesigned。
　　"Welldone！"saidTrefusis。"ThiswillmakeBrownhappyfortherestofthemonth。"
　　"Itistimeforustogonow,"saidErskinegloomily。
　　"Lookinuponmeatanytime;youshallbewelcome,"saidTrefusis。"Youneednotstanduponanysortofceremony。"
　　Thentheyparted;SirCharlesassuringTrefusisthathehadneverspentamoreinterestingmorning,andshakinghandswithhimatconsiderablelengththreetimes。ErskinesaidlittleuntilhewasintheRiversideRoadwithhisfriend,whenhesuddenlyburstout:
　　"Whatthedevildoyoumeanbydrinkingtwotumblersofsuchstaggeringstuffatoneo'clockinthedayinthehouseofadangerousmanlikethat？IamverysorryIwentintothefellow'splace。Ihadmisgivingsaboutit,andtheyhavebeenfullyborneout。"
　　"Howso？"saidSirCharles,takenaback。
　　"Hehasoverreachedus。Iwasadeucedfooltosignthatpaper,andsowereyou。Itwasforthatthatheinvitedus。"
　　"Rubbish,mydearboy。Itwasnothispaper,butDonovanBrown's。"
　　"Idoubtit。MostlikelyhetalkedBrownintosigningitjustashetalkedus。Itellyouhiswaysareallcrooked,likehisideas。DidyouhearhowheliedaboutMissLindsay？"
　　"Oh,youweremistakenaboutthat。Hedoesnotcaretwostrawsforherorforanyone。"
　　"Well,ifyouaresatisfied,Iamnot。YouwouldnotbeinsuchhighspiritsoveritifyouhadtakenaslittlewineasI。"
　　"Pshaw！you'retooridiculous。Itwascapitalwine。DoyoumeantosayIamdrunk？"
　　"No。Butyouwouldnothavesignedifyouhadnottakenthatsecondgoblet。Ifyouhadnotforcedme——Icouldnotgetoutofitafteryousettheexample——Iwouldhaveseenhimd——dsoonerthanhavehadanythingtodowithhispetition。"
　　"Idon'tseewhatharmcancomeofit,"saidSirCharles,bravingoutsomesecretdisquietude。
　　"Iwillnevergointohishouseagain,"saidErskinemoodily。"Wewerejustliketwofliesinaspider'sweb。"
　　Meanwhile,TrefusiswasfulfillinghispromisetowritetoDonovanBrown。
　　"Sallust'sHouse。
　　"DearBrown:Ihavespenttheforenoonanglingforacoupleofveryyoungfish,andhavelandedthemwithmoretroublethantheyareworth。Onehasgaudyscales:heisabaronet,andanamateurartist,savethemark。Allmyargumentsandmylittlemuseumofphotographswerelostonhim;butwhenImentionedyourname,andpromisedhimanintroductiontoyou,hegorgedthebaitgreedily。
　　Hewashalfdrunkwhenhesigned;andIshouldnothavelethimtouchthepaperifIhadnotconvincedmyselfbeforehandthathemeanswell,andthatmywinehadonlyfreedhisnaturalgenerosityfromhisconventionalcowardiceandprejudice。Wemustgethisnamepublishedinasmanyjournalsaspossibleasasignatorytothegreatpetition;itwilldrawonothersasyournamedrewhim。Thesecondnovice,ChichesterErskine,isayoungpoet。Hewillnotbeofmuchusetous,thoughheisadevotedchampionoflibertyinblankverse,anddedicateshisworkstoMazzini,etc。Hesignedreluctantly。Allthishesitationistheuncertaintythatcomesofignorance;theyhavenotfoundoutthetruthforthemselves,andareafraidtotrustme,mattershavingcometothepassatwhichnomandarestrusthisfellow。
　　"IhavemetaprettyyoungladyherewhomightserveyouasamodelforHypatia。Sheiscrammedwithalltheprejudicesofthepeerage,butIameffectingacure。IhavesetmyheartonmarryinghertoErskine,who,thinkingthatIammakinglovetoheronmyownaccount,isjealous。Theweatherispleasanthere,andIamhavingamerrylifeofit,butIfindmyselftooidle。
　　Etc。,etc。,etc。"
　　CHAPTERXVI
　　Onesunnyforenoon,asAgathasatreadingonthedoorstepoftheconservatory,theshadowofherparasoldeepened,andshe,lookingupforsomethingdenserthanthesilkofit,sawTrefusis。
　　"Oh！"
　　Sheofferedhimnofurthergreeting,havingfalleninwithhishabitofdispensing,asfaraspossible,withsalutationsandceremonies。Heseemedinnohurrytospeak,andso,afterapause,shebegan,"SirCharles——"
　　"Isgonetotown,"hesaid。"Erskineisoutonhisbicycle。LadyBrandonandMissLindsayhavegonetothevillageinthewagonette,andyouhavecomeoutheretoenjoythesummersunandreadrubbish。Iknowallyournewsalready。"
　　"Youareveryclever,and,asusual,wrong。SirCharleshasnotgonetotown。Hehasonlygonetotherailwaystationforsomepapers;hewillbebackforluncheon。Howdoyouknowsomuchofouraffairs？"
　　"Iwasontheroofofmyhousewithafield—glass。Isawyoucomeoutandsitdownhere。ThenSirCharlespassed。ThenErskine。
　　ThenLadyBrandon,drivingwithgreatenergy,andpresentingaremarkablecontrasttothedisdainfulreposeofGertrude。"
　　"Gertrude！Ilikeyourcheek。"
　　"Youmeanthatyoudislikemypresumption。"
　　"No,Ithinkcheekamoreexpressivewordthanpresumption;andI
　　meanthatIlikeit——thatitamusesme。"
　　"Really！Whatareyoureading？"
　　"Rubbish,yousaidjustnow。Anovel。"
　　"Thatis,alyingstoryoftwopeoplewhoneverexisted,andwhowouldhaveactedverydifferentlyiftheyhadexisted。"
　　"Justso。"
　　"Couldyounotimaginesomethingjustasamusingforyourself？"
　　"Perhapsso;butitwouldbetoomuchtrouble。Besides,cookingtakesawayone'sappetiteforeating。Ishouldnotrelishstoriesofmyownconfection。"
　　"Whichvolumeareyouat？"
　　"Thethird。"
　　"Thentheheroandheroineareonthepointofbeingunited？"
　　"Ireallydon'tknow。Thisisoneofyourclevernovels。Iwishthecharacterswouldnottalksomuch。"
　　"Nomatter。Twoofthemareinlovewithoneanother,aretheynot？"
　　"Yes。Itwouldnotbeanovelwithoutthat。"
　　"Doyoubelieve,inyoursecretsoul,Agatha——ItakethelibertyofusingyourChristiannamebecauseIwishtobeverysolemn——doyoureallybelievethatanyhumanbeingwaseverunselfishenoughtoloveanotherinthestory—bookfashion？"
　　"Ofcourse。AtleastIsupposeso。Ihaveneverthoughtmuchaboutit。"
　　"Idoubtit。Myownbeliefisthatnolatter—daymanhasanyfaithinthethoroughnessorpermanenceofhisaffectionforhismate。Yethedoesnotdoubtthesincerityofherprofessions,andheconcealsthehollownessofhisownfromher,partlybecauseheisashamedofit,andpartlyoutofpityforher。Andshe,ontheotherside,isplayingexactlythesamecomedy。"
　　"Ibelievethatiswhatmendo,butnotwomen。"
　　"Indeed！Praydoyourememberpretendingtobeverymuchinlovewithmeoncewhen——"
　　Agathareddenedandplacedherpalmonthestepasifabouttospringup。Butshecheckedherselfandsaid:"Stop,Mr。Trefusis。
　　IfyoutalkaboutthatIshallgoaway。Iwonderatyou！Haveyounotaste？',"Nonewhatever。AndasIwastheaggrievedpartyonthat——stay,don'tgo。Iwillneveralludetoitagain。Iamgrowingafraidofyou。Youusedtobeafraidofme。"
　　"Yes;andyouusedtobullyme。Youhaveahabitofbullyingwomenwhoareweakenoughtofearyou。YouareagreatdealclevererthanI,andknowmuchmore,Idaresay;butIamnotintheleastafraidofyounow。"
　　"Youhavenoreasontobe,andneverhadany。Henrietta,ifshewerealive,couldtestifythatitthereisadefectinmyrelationswithwomen,itarisesfrommyexcessiveamiability。I
　　couldnotrefuseawomananythingshehadsetherheartupon——exceptmyhandinmarriage。Aslongasyoursexarecontenttostopshortofthattheycandoastheypleasewithme。"
　　"Howcruel！IthoughtyouwerenearlyengagedtoGertrude。"
　　"Theusualinterpretationofafriendshipbetweenamanandawoman！Ihaveneverthoughtofsuchathing;andIamsuresheneverhas。WearenothalfsointimateasyouandSirCharles。"
　　"Oh,SirCharlesismarried。AndIadviseyoutogetmarriedifyouwishtoavoidcreatingmisunderstandingsbyyourfriendships。"
　　Trefusiswasstruck。Insteadofanswering,hestood,afteronestartledglanceather,lookingintentlyattheknuckleofhisforefinger。
　　"Dotakepityonourpoorsex,"saidAgathamaliciously。"Youaresorich,andsoveryclever,andreallysonicelookingthatyououghttoshareyourselfwithsomebody。Gertrudewouldbeonlytoohappy。
　　Trefusisgrinnedandshookhishead,slowlybutemphatically。
　　"Isuppose_I_shouldhavenochance,"continuedAgathapathetically。
　　"Ishouldbedelighted,ofcourse,"herepliedwithsimulatedconfusion,butwithalurkinggleaminhiseyethatmighthavecheckedher,hadshenoticedit。
　　"Domarryme,Mr。Trefusis,"shepleaded,claspingherhandsinaraptureofmischievousraillery。"Praydo。"
　　"Thankyou,"saidTrefusisdeterminedly;"Iwill。"
　　"Iamverysureyoushan't,"saidAgatha,afteranincredulouspause,springingupandgatheringherskirtasiftorunaway。
　　"YoudonotsupposeIwasinearnest,doyou？"
　　"UndoubtedlyIdo。_I_aminearnest。"
　　Agathahesitated,uncertainwhetherhemightnotbeplayingwithherasshehadjustbeenplayingwithhim。"Takecare,"shesaid。
　　"Imaychangemymindandbeinearnest,too;andthenhowwillyoufeel,Mr。Trefusis？"
　　"Ithink,underouralteredrelations,youhadbettercallmeSidney。"
　　"Ithinkwehadbetterdropthejoke。Itwasinratherbadtaste,andIshouldnothavemadeit,perhaps。"
　　"Itwouldbeanexecrablejoke;thereforeIhavenointentionofregardingitasone。Youshallbeheldtoyouroffer,Agatha。Areyouinlovewithme？"
　　"Notintheleast。Nottheverysmallestbitintheworld。IdonotknowanybodywithwhomIamlessinloveorlesslikelytobeinlove。"
　　"Thenyoumustmarryme。Ifyouwereinlovewithme,Ishouldrunaway。MysaintedHenriettaadoredme,andIprovedunworthyofadoration——thoughIwasimmenselyflattered。"
　　"Yes;exactly！Thewayyoutreatedyourfirstwifeoughttobesufficienttowarnanywomanagainstbecomingyoursecond。"
　　"Anywomanwholovedme,youmean。Butyoudonotloveme,andifIrunawayyouwillhavetheadvantageofbeingridofme。Oursettlementscanbedrawnsoastosecureyouhalfmyfortuneinsuchanevent。"
　　"Youwillneverhaveachanceofrunningawayfromme。"
　　"Ishallnotwantto。IamnotsosqueamishasIwas。No;IdonotthinkIshallrunawayfromyou。"
　　"Idonotthinksoeither。"
　　"Well,whenshallwebemarried？"
　　"Never,"saidAgatha,andfled。Butbeforeshehadgoneastephecaughther。
　　"Don't,"shesaidbreathlessly。"Takeyourarmaway。Howdareyou？"
　　Hereleasedherandshutthedooroftheconservatory。"Now,"hesaid,"ifyouwanttorunawayyouwillhavetorunintheopen。"
　　"Youareveryimpertinent。Letmegoinimmediately。"
　　"Doyouwantmetobegyoutomarrymeafteryouhaveofferedtodoitfreely？"
　　"ButIwasonlyjoking;Idon'tcareforyou,"shesaid,lookingroundforanoutlet。
　　"Agatha,"hesaid,withgrimpatience,"halfanhouragoIhadnomoreintentionofmarryingyouthanofmakingavoyagetothemoon。ButwhenyoumadethesuggestionIfeltallitsforceinaninstant,andnownothingwillsatisfymebutyourkeepingyourword。OfallthewomenIknow,youaretheonlyonenotquiteafool。"
　　"Ishouldbeagreatfoolif——"
　　"Ifyoumarriedme,youweregoingtosay;butIdon'tthinkso。
　　Iamtheonlyman,notquiteanass,ofyouracquaintance。Iknowmyvalue,andyours。AndIlovedyoulongago,whenIhadnorightto。"
　　Agathafrowned。"No,"shesaid。"Thereisnouseinsayinganythingmoreaboutit。Itisoutofthequestion。"
　　"Come,don'tbevindictive。Iwasmoresincerethenthanyouwere。Butthathasnothingtodowiththepresent。Youhavespentourrenewedacquaintanceonthedefensiveagainstme,retortinguponme,teasingandtemptingme。Begenerousforonce,andsayYeswithagoodwill。"
　　"Oh,INEVERtemptedyou,"criedAgatha。"Ididnot。Itisnottrue。"Hesaidnothing,butofferedhishand。"No;goaway;I
　　willnot。"Hepersisted,andshefeltherpowerofresistancesuddenlywane。Terror—stricken,shesaidhastily,"Thereisnottheleastuseinbotheringme;Iwilltellyounothingto—day。"
　　"PromisemeonyourhonorthatyouwillsayYesto—morrow,andI
　　willleaveyouinpeaceuntilthen。"
　　"Iwillnot。"
　　"Thedeucetakeyoursex,"hesaidplaintively。
　　"Youknowmymindnow,andIhavetostandherecoquettingbecauseyoudon'tknowyourown。IfIcaredformycomfortI
　　shouldremainabachelor。"
　　"Iadviseyoutodoso,"shesaid,stealingbackwardtowardsthedoor。"Youareaveryinterestingwidower。Awifewouldspoilyou。Considerthetroublesofdomesticity,too。"
　　"Iliketroubles。Theystrengthen——Aha！"（shehadsnatchedattheknobofthedoor,andheswiftlyputhishandonhersandstayedher）。"Notyet,ifyouplease。Canyounotspeakoutlikeawoman——likeaman,Imean？YoumaywithholdabonefromMaxuntilhestandsonhishindlegstobegforit,butyoushouldnottreatmelikeadog。SayYesfrankly,anddonotkeepmebegging。"
　　"Whatintheworlddoyouwanttomarrymefor？"
　　"BecauseIwasmadetocarryahouseonmyshoulders,andwilldoso。IwanttodothebestIcanformyself,andIshallneverhavesuchachanceagain。AndIcannothelpmyself,anddon'tknowwhy;thatistheplaintruthofthematter。Youwillmarrysomeonesomeday。"Sheshookherhead。"Yes,youwill。Whynotmarryme？"
　　Agathabithernetherlip,lookedruefullyattheground,and,afteralongpause,saidreluctantly,"Verywell。Butmind,I
　　thinkyouareactingveryfoolishly,andifyouaredisappointedafterwards,youmustnotblameME。"
　　"Itaketheriskofmybargain,"hesaid,releasingherhand,andleaningagainstthedoorashetookouthispocketdiary。"Youwillhavetotaketheriskofyours,whichIhopemaynotprovetheworseofthetwo。ThisistheseventeenthofJune。Whatdatebeforethetwenty—fourthofJulywillsuityou？"
　　"Youmeanthetwenty—fourthofJulynextyear,Ipresume？"
　　"No;Imeanthisyear。Iamgoingabroadonthatdate,marriedornot,toattendaconferenceatGeneva,andIwantyoutocomewithme。Iwillshowyoualotofplacesandthingsthatyouhaveneverseenbefore。Itisyourrighttonametheday,butyouhavenoseriousbusinesstoprovidefor,andIhave。"
　　"Butyoudon'tknowallthethingsIshall——Ishouldhavetoprovide。Youhadbetterwaituntilyoucomebackfromthecontinent。"
　　"Thereisnothingtobeprovidedonyourpartbutsettlementsandyourtrousseau。Thetrousseauisallnonsense;andJanseniusknowsmeofoldinthematterofsettlements。Igotmarriedinsixweeksbefore。"
　　"Yes,"saidAgathasharply,"butIamnotHenrietta。"
　　"No,thankHeaven,"heassentedplacidly。
　　Agathawasstruckwithremorse。"Thatwasavilethingformetosay,"shesaid;"andforyoutoo。"
　　"Whateveristrueistothepurpose,vileornot。WillyoucometoGenevaonthetwenty—fourth？"
　　"But——IreallywasnotthinkingwhenI——IdidnotintendtosaythatIwould——I——"
　　"Iknow。Youwillcomeifwearemarried。"
　　"Yes。IFwearemarried。"
　　"Weshallbemarried。DonotwriteeithertoyourmotherorJanseniusuntilIaskyou。"
　　"Idon'tintendto。Ihavenothingtowriteabout。"
　　"Wretchthatyouare！AnddonotbejealousifyoucatchmemakinglovetoLadyBrandon。Ialwaysdoso;sheexpectsit。"
　　"Youmaymakelovetowhomyouplease。Itisnoconcernofmine。"
　　"HerecomesthewagonettewithLadyBrandonandGer——andMissLindsay。Imustn'tcallherGertrudenowexceptwhenyouarenotby。Beforetheyinterruptus,letmeremindyouofthethreepointsweareagreedupon。Iloveyou。Youdonotloveme。Wearetobemarriedbeforethetwenty—fourthofnextmonth。NowImustflytohelpherladyshiptoalight。"
　　Hehastenedtothehousedoor,atwhichthewagonettehadjuststopped。Agatha,bewildered,andashamedtofaceherfriends,wentinthroughtheconservatory,andlockedherselfinherroom。
　　TrefusiswentintothelibrarywithGertrudewhilstLadyBrandonloiteredinthehalltotakeoffherglovesandaskquestionsoftheservants。Whenshefollowed,shefoundthetwostandingtogetheratthewindow。Gertrudewaslisteningtohimwiththepatientexpressionshenowoftenworewhenhetalked。Hewassmiling,butitstruckJanethathewasnotquiteatease。"IwasjustbeginningtotellMissLindsay,"hesaid,"ofanextraordinarythingthathashappenedduringyourabsence。"
　　"Iknow,"exclaimedJane,withsuddenconviction。"Theheaterintheconservatoryhascracked。"
　　"Possibly,"saidTrefusis;"but,ifso,Ihavenotheardofit。"
　　"Ifithasn'tcracked,itwill,"saidJanegloomily。Then,assumingwithsomeeffortaninterestinTrefusis'snews,sheadded:"Well,whathashappened？"
　　"IwaschattingwithMissWyliejustnow,whenasingularideaoccurredtous。Wediscusseditforsometime;andtheupshotisthatwearetobemarriedbeforetheendofnextmonth。"
　　Janereddenedandstaredathim;andhelookedkeenlybackather。Gertrude,thoughunobserved,didnotsufferherexpressionofpatienthappinesstochangeintheleast;butagreenish—whitecolorsuddenlyappearedinherface,andonlygaveplaceveryslowlytoherusualcomplexion。
　　"DoyoumeantosaythatyouaregoingtomarryAGATHA？"saidLadyBrandonincredulously,afterapause。
　　"Yes。IhadnointentionofdoingsowhenIlastsawyouorI
　　shouldhavetoldyou。"
　　"Ineverheardofsuchathinginmylife！Youfellinlovewithoneanotherinfiveminutes,Isuppose。"
　　"GoodHeavens,no！wearenotinlovewithoneanother。CanyoubelievethatIwouldmarryforsuchafrivolousreason？No。Thesubjectturnedupaccidentally,andtheadvantageofamatchbetweenusstruckmeforcibly。Iwasfortunateenoughtoconverthertomyopinion。"
　　"Yes;shewantedalotofpressing,Idaresay,"saidJane,glancingatGertrude,whowassmilingunmeaningly。
　　"Asyouimply,"saidTrefusiscoolly,"herreluctancemayhavebeenaffected,andsheonlytoogladtogetsuchacharminghusband。Assumingthattobethecase,shedissembledremarkablywell。"
　　Gertrudetookoffherbonnet,andlefttheroomwithoutspeaking。
　　"ThisismyrevengeuponyouformarryingBrandon,"hesaidthen,approachingJane。
　　"Oh,yes,"sheretortedironically。"Ibelieveallthat,ofcourse。"
　　"YouhavethesamesecurityforitstruthasforthatofallthefoolishthingsIconfesstoyou。There！"Hepointedtoapaneloflookingglass,inwhichJane'sfigurewasreflectedatfulllength。
　　"Idon'tseeanythingtoadmire,"saidJane,lookingatherselfwithnogreatfavor。"Thereisplentyofme,ifyouadmirethat。"
　　"Itisimpossibletohavetoomuchofagoodthing。ButImustnotlookanymore。ThoughAgathasaysshedoesnotloveme,IamnotsurethatshewouldbepleasedifIweretolookforlovefromanyoneelse。"
　　"Saysshedoesnotloveyou！Don'tbelieveher;shehastakentroubleenoughtocatchyou。"
　　"Iamflattered。Youcaughtmewithoutanytrouble,andyetyouwouldnothaveme。"
　　"Itismannerstowaittobeasked。IthinkyouhavetreatedGertrudeshamefully——Ihopeyouwon'tbeoffendedwithmeforsayingso。IblameAgathamost。Sheisanawfullydouble—facedgirl。"
　　"Howso？"saidTrefusis,surprised。"WhathasMissLindsaytodowithit？"
　　"Youknowverywell。"
　　"IassureyouIdonot。IfyouwerespeakingofyourselfIcouldunderstandyou。"
　　"Oh,youcangetoutofitcleverly,likeallmen;butyoucan'thoodwinkme。Youshouldn'thavepretendedtolikeGertrudewhenyouwerereallypullingacordwithAgatha。Andshe,too,pretendingtoflirtwithSirCharles——asifhewouldcaretwopenceforher！"
　　TrefusisseemedNlittledisturbed。"IhopeMissLindsayhadnosuch——butshecouldnot。"
　　"Oh,couldn'tshe？Youwillsoonseewhethershehadornot。"
　　"Youmisunderstoodus,LadyBrandon;MissLindsayknowsbetter。
　　Remember,too,thatthisproposalofminewasquiteunpremeditated。ThismorningIhadnotenderthoughtsofanyoneexceptonewhomitwouldbeimpropertoname。"
　　"Oh,thatisalltalk。Itwon'tdonow。"
　　"Iwilltalknomoreatpresent。Imustbeofftothevillagetotelegraphtomysolicitor。IfImeetErskineIwilltellhimthegoodnews。"
　　"Hewillbedelighted。Hethought,aswealldid,thatyouwerecuttinghimoutwithGertrude。"
　　Trefusissmiled,shookhishead,and,withaglanceofadmiringhomagetoJane'scharms,wentout。JanewascontemplatingherselfintheglasswhenaservantbeggedhertocomeandspeaktoMasterCharlesandMissFanny。Shehurriedupstairstothenursery,whereherboyandgirl,disputingeachother'spriorrighttotorturethebaby,hadcometoblows。Theyweresomewhatfrightened,butnotatallappeased,byJane'sentrance。Shescolded,coaxed,threatened,bribed,quotedDr。Watts,appealedtothenurseandtheninsultedher,demandedofthechildrenwhethertheylovedoneanother,whethertheylovedmamma,andwhethertheywantedarightgoodwhipping。Atlast,exasperatedbyherowninabilitytorestoreorder,sheseizedthebaby,whichhadcriedincessantlythroughout,and,declaringthatitwasdoingitonpurposeandshouldhavesomethingrealtocryfor,gaveitanexemplarysmacking,andorderedtheotherstobed。Theboy,awedbythefateofhisinfantbrother,offered,bywayofcompromise,tobegoodifMissWyliewouldcomeandplaywithhim,aproposalwhichprovokedfromhisjealousmotheraboxontheearthatsenthimhowlingtohiscot。Thenshelefttheroom,pausingonthethresholdtoremarkthatifsheheardanothersoundfromthemthatday,theymightexpecttheworstfromher。