the
Minister bowed the deputation out of the room. Then he pisht and pshawed,
swung a field glass across his shoulder, and prepared to leave for the
day.

"Confound them! How these Christians love each other! I leave it with
you, Drake. When the matter was mentioned at Downing Street the Prime
Minister told us to act without regard to his interest in the young
priest. If there's likely to be a riot let the Commissioner get his
warrant--Heigho! Ten-thirty! I'm off! Good-day!"

Some minutes afterward Drake himself, having written to Scotland Yard,
followed his chief down the private staircase to the quadrangle, where
Glory and Rosa were waiting in the carriage under the arch.

In honour of the event in which his horse was to play a part, Drake had
engaged a coach to take a party of friends to the Downs. They assembled
at a hotel in the Buckingham Palace Road. Lord Robert was there, dressed
in the latest fashion, with boots of approved Parisian shape and a
necktie of crying colours. Betty Bellman was with him, in a red and white
dress and a large red hat. There was a lady in pale green with a light
bonnet, another in gray and white, and another in brightest blue. They
were a large, smart, and even gorgeous company, chiefly theatrical.
Before eleven o'clock they were spinning along the Kennington Road on
their way to Epsom.

Drake himself drove and Glory occupied the seat of honour by his side.
She was looking brighter now, and was smiling and laughing and making
little sallies in response to her companion's talk. He was telling her
all about the carnival. The Derby was the greatest race the world over.
It was run for about six thousand sovereigns, but the total turnover of
the meeting was probably a million of money. Thus on its business side
alone it was a great national enterprise, and the puritans who would
abolish it ought to think of that. A race-horse cost about three hundred
a year to keep, but of course nobody maintained his racing establishment
on his winnings. Nearly everybody had to bet, and gambling was not so
great an offence as some people supposed. The whole trade of the world
was of the nature of a gamble, life itself was a gamble, and the
race-course was the only market in the world where no man could afford to
go bankrupt, or be a defaulter and refuse to pay.

They were now going by Clapham Common with an unbroken stream of vehicles
of every sort--coaches with outriders, landaus, hansom cabs, omnibus