s she could tell of that proposal as to the
interest of the money due from the firm in the New Road.

"If it could only be made certain," said the widow, who had fallen
much from her high ideas since Margaret had last seen her. Things
were greatly changed in that house since the day on which the dinner,
a la Russe, had been given under the auspices of Mr Grandairs. "If
it can only be made certain. They still keep his name up in the firm.
There it is as plain as life over the place of business"--she would
not even yet call it a shop--"Rubb and Mackenzie; and yet they won't
let me know anything as to how matters are going on. I went there the
other day, and they would tell me nothing. And as for Samuel Rubb, he
hasn't been here this last fortnight, and I've got no one to see me
righted. If you were to ask Mr Slow, wouldn't he be able to see me
righted?"

Margaret declared that she hardly knew whether that would come
within Mr Slow's line of business, and that she did not feel herself
competent to give advice on such a point as that. She then explained,
as best she could, that her own affairs were not as yet settled, but
that she was led to hope, from what had been said to her, that the
interest due by the firm on the money borrowed might become a fixed
annual income for Mrs Mackenzie's benefit.

After that it came out that Mr Maguire had again been in Gower
Street.

"And he was alone, for the best part of half an hour, with that young
woman downstairs," said Mrs Mackenzie.

"And you saw him?" Margaret asked.

"Oh, yes; I saw him afterwards."

"And what did he say?"

"He didn't say much to me. Only he gave me to understand--at least,
that is what I suppose he meant--that you and he-- He meant to say,
that you and he had been courting, I suppose."

Then Margaret understood why Miss Colza had desired to know whether
she had quarrelled with all the Balls. In her open and somewhat
indignant speech in the drawing-room at the Cedars, she had declared
before Mr Maguire, in her aunt's presence, that she was engaged to
marry her cousin, John Ball. Mr Maguire had now enlisted Miss Colza
in his service, and had told Miss Colza what had occurred. But still
Miss Mackenzie did not thoroughly understand the matter. Why, she
asked herself, should Mr Maguire trouble himself further, now that he
knew that she had no fortune? But, in truth, it was not so easy to
satisfy Mr Maguire on that point, as it was to satisfy Miss Mackenzi