observed Kitty and observed her with
dislike. The attitude of her companions was not so simple.

"What an amazing young woman!" said Harman, presently, under his breath,
yet open-mouthed. "I suppose she and Cliffe are old friends."

"I believe they never met before," said Mary.

Darrell laughed.

"Lady Kitty makes short work of the preliminaries," he said; "she told
me the other night life wasn't long enough to begin with talk about the
weather."

"The weather?" said Harman. "At the present moment she and Cliffe seem
to be discussing the 'Dame aux Camelias.' Since when do they take young
girls to see that kind of thing in Paris?"

Miss Lyster gave a little cough, and bending forward said to Harman:
"Lady Tranmore has shown me your picture. It is a dear, delicious thing!
I never saw anything more heavenly than the angel."

Harman smiled a flattered smile. Mary Lyster referred to a copy of a
"Filippo Lippi Annunciation" which he had just executed in water-color
for Lady Tranmore, to whom he was devoted. He was, however, devoted to a
good many peeresses, with whom he took tea, and for whom he undertook
many harmless and elegant services. He painted their portraits, in small
size, after pre-Raphaelite models, and he occasionally presented them
with copies--a little weak, but charming--of their favorite Italian
pictures. He and Mary began now to talk of Florence with much enthusiasm
and many caressing adjectives. For Harman most things were "sweet"; for
Mary, "interesting" or "suggestive." She talked fast and fluently; a
subtle observer might have guessed she wished it to be seen that for her
Lady Kitty Bristol's flirtations, be they in or out of taste, were
simply non-existent.

Darrell listened intermittently, watched Cliffe and Lady Kitty, and
thought a good deal. That extraordinary girl was certainly "carrying on"
with Cliffe, as she had "carried on" with Ashe on the night of her first
acquaintance with him in St. James's Place. Ashe apparently took it with
equanimity, for he was still sitting beside the pair, twisting a
paper-knife and smiling, sometimes putting in a word, but more often
silent, and apparently of no account at all to either Kitty or Cliffe.

Darrell knew that the new minister disliked and despised Geoffrey
Cliffe; he was aware, too, that Cliffe returned these sentiments, and
was not unlikely to be found attacking Ashe in public before long on
certain points of foreign policy, where Cliffe conc