n't mine. But
it will have to do. Good-night, Geoffrey; I daresay that you will have
gone to bed when I get back," and she was gone.

Geoffrey picked up his _St. James's Gazette_ with a sigh. He felt
hurt, and knew that he was a fool for his pains. Lady Honoria was not a
sympathetic person; it was not fair to expect it from her. Still he felt
hurt. He went upstairs and heard Effie her prayers.

"Where has you beed, daddy?--to the Smoky Town?" The Temple was
euphemistically known to Effie as the Smoky Town.

"Yes, dear."

"You go to the Smoky Town to make bread and butter, don't you, daddy?"

"Yes, dear, to make bread and butter."

"And did you make any, daddy?"

"Yes, Effie, a good deal to-day."

"Then where is it? In your pocket?"

"No, love, not exactly. I won a big lawsuit to-day, and I shall get a
great many pennies for it."

"Oh," answered Effie meditatively, "I am glad that you did win. You do
like to win, doesn't you, daddy, dear."

"Yes, love."

"Then I will give you a kiss, daddy, because you did win," and she
suited the action to the word.

Geoffrey went from the little room with a softened heart. He dressed and
ate some dinner.

Then he sat down and wrote a long letter to Beatrice, telling her all
about the trial, and not sparing her his reasons for adopting each
particular tactic and line of argument which conduced to the great
result.

And though his letter was four sheets in length, he knew that Beatrice
would not be bored at having to read it.

CHAPTER XVIII

THE RISING STAR

As might be expected, the memorable case of Parsons and Douse proved to
be the turning point in Geoffrey's career, which was thenceforward one
of brilliant and startling success. On the very next morning when he
reached his chambers it was to find three heavy briefs awaiting him, and
they proved to be but the heralds of an uninterrupted flow of lucrative
business. Of course, he was not a Queen's Counsel, but now that his
great natural powers of advocacy had become generally known, solicitors
frequently employed him alone, or gave him another junior, so that he
might bring those powers to bear upon juries. Now it was, too, that
Geoffrey reaped the fruits of the arduous legal studies which he had
followed without cessation from the time when he found himself thrown
upon his own resources, and which had made a sound lawyer of him as
well as a brilliant and effective advocate. Soon, even with his great
capac