nt he awoke next
morning; and by the time he had dressed and breakfasted he determined
that it was impossible all that he had seen could be acting. 'No
woman, no young woman, could have such art. Sir James Brooke had been
unwarrantably severe; he would go and tell him so.'

But Sir James Brooke this day received orders for his regiment to march
to quarters in a distant part of Ireland. His head was full of arms,
and ammunition, and knapsacks, and billets, and routes; and there was no
possibility, even in the present chivalrous disposition of our hero, to
enter upon the defence of the Lady Isabel. Indeed, in the regret he
felt for the approaching and unexpected departure of his friend, Lord
Colambre forgot the fair lady. But just when Sir James had his foot in
the stirrup, he stopped.

'By the bye, my dear lord, I saw you at the play last night. You seemed
to be much interested. Don't think me impertinent, if I remind you of
our conversation when we were riding home from Tusculum; and if I warn
you,' said he, mounting his horse, 'to beware of counterfeits--for such
are abroad.' Reining in his impatient steed, Sir James turned again and
added, 'DEEDS NOT WORDS, is my motto. Remember, we can judge better
by the conduct of people towards others than by their manner towards
ourselves.'

CHAPTER VII

Our hero was quite convinced of the good sense of his friend's last
remark, that it is safer to judge of people by their conduct to others
than by their manners towards ourselves; but as yet, he felt scarcely
any interest on the subject of Lady Dashfort or Lady Isabel's
characters; however, he inquired and listened to all the evidence he
could obtain respecting this mother and daughter.

He heard terrible reports of the mischief they had done in families;
the extravagance into which they had led men; the imprudence, to say
no worse, into which they had betrayed women. Matches broken off,
reputations ruined, husbands alienated from their wives, and wives made
jealous of their husbands. But in some of these stories he discovered
exaggeration so flagrant as to make him doubt the whole; in others, it
could not be positively determined whether the mother or daughter had
been the person most to blame.

Lord Colambre always followed the charitable rule of believing only half
what the world says, and here he thought it fair to believe which half
he pleased. He further observed, that, though all joined in abusing
these ladies