gay. He
had come to Lucerne with the fixed purpose of definitely proposing
marriage to Eve. He was far too worldly-wise to fail to perceive
that, so far at least, Mrs. Sylvester had certainly taken no trouble
to discourage his pretensions. His attentions, he argued, had been
by no means obscure; his studio had been singularly honoured by the
presence of Miss Sylvester and her mother, for the purposes of the
portrait; he had even been granted a sitting at the house in Park
Street, when a less rigid supervision had been exercised, and when,
in the absence of the mother, he had been able to assure himself
that the girl was far from despising his adoration. Before leaving
town he had dined with his uncle, the Colonel, at his club, and the
veteran had spontaneously and strenuously urged the step, and even
thrown out promising hints as to settlements. He broke in upon the
little circle at the hour of afternoon tea, and Eve found his gray
travelling suit, and the bronze of his complexion, exceedingly
becoming. He announced that he had come to stay for a week or two;
he was going to make some sketches, and he couldn't tear himself
away from that delightful bridge, and his lodgings!

"My dear fellow," he said to Charles Sylvester, with an air of
familiarity which gave one an insight as to the advance the artist
had made in his relations with the family, "you must come and see my
diggings. The most delightful old hostelry in Europe. Built straight
up out of the lake, like the castle of Chillon. It's called the
_Gasthof zum Pfistern_. I could fish out of my bedroom window. I
assure you, it's charming. You must come and dine with me there. I
hope you ladies will so far honour me?"

This project, however, fell through, and by way of compensation
Lightmark and Charles enjoyed the privilege of entertaining the
party, including Lady Garnett and Miss Masters, at Borghoni's; after
which the younger people chartered a boat, and floated idly about
the star-reflecting lake, while the dowagers maintained a discreet
surveillance from their seat on the esplanade.

Of this last incident it may be said that Lightmark and Eve found it
altogether delightful, the latter especially being struck by the
romance of the situation; while Charles was inclined to be
ponderously sentimental, and Miss Masters afterwards confessed to
having felt bored.

In the course of the next day Lightmark had the privilege of a
confidential interview with the mother