it a moment after he had made it. But he was
weary and out of temper. Why did his wife bring such people to the
house? Very shortly afterwards their guest took his leave, reflecting
that Bingham was a conceited ass, and altogether too much for him. "And
I don't believe that he has got a thousand a year," he reflected to
himself, "and the title is his wife's. I suppose that is what he married
her for. She's a much better sort than he is, any way, though I don't
quite make her out either--one can't go very far with her. But she is
the daughter of a peer and worth cultivating, but not when Bingham is at
home--not if I know it."

"What have you said to Mr. Dunstan to make him go away so soon,
Geoffrey?" asked his wife.

"Said to him? oh, I don't know. He offered to give me a pair of guns,
and I told him that I did not accept presents from my acquaintances.
Really, Honoria, I don't want to interfere with your way of life, but
I do not understand how you can associate with such people as this Mr.
Dunstan."

"Associate with him!" answered Lady Honoria. "Do you suppose I want to
associate with him? Do you suppose that I don't know what the man is?
But beggars cannot be choosers; he may be a cad, but he has thirty
thousand a year, and we simply cannot afford to throw away an
acquaintance with thirty thousand a year. It is too bad of you,
Geoffrey," she went on with rising temper, "when you know all that I
must put up with in our miserable poverty-stricken life, to take every
opportunity of making yourself disagreeable to the people I think it
wise to ask to come and see us. Here I return from comfort to this
wretched place, and the first thing that you do is make a fuss. Mr.
Dunstan has got boxes at several of the best theaters, and he offered to
let me have one whenever I liked--and now of course there is an end of
it. It is too bad, I say!"

"It is really curious, Honoria," said her husband, "to see what
obligations you are ready to put yourself under in search of pleasure.
It is not dignified of you to accept boxes at theatres from this
gentleman."

"Nonsense. There is no obligation about it. If he gave us a box, of
course he would make a point of looking in during the evening, and then
telling his friends that it was Lady Honoria Bingham he was speaking
to--that is the exchange. I want to go to the theatre; he wants to get
into good society--there you have the thing in a nutshell. It is done
every day. The fact of th