"Well, yes; Mr. Gordon is a remarkably well-bred, sensible young man.
How different from that disagreeable, bearish father of his, who went to
law with you!"

"Very different indeed, but with just as much of the Chillingly blood in
him. How the Chillinglys ever gave birth to a Kenelm is a question much
more puzzling."

"Oh, my dear Sir Peter, don't be metaphysical. You know how I hate
puzzles."

"And yet, Caroline, I have to thank you for a puzzle which I can never
interpret by my brain. There are a great many puzzles in human nature
which can only be interpreted by the heart."

"Very true," said Lady Chillingly. "I suppose Kenelm is to have his old
room, just opposite to Mr. Gordon's."

"Ay--ay, just opposite. Opposite they will be all their lives. Only
think, Caroline, I have made a discovery!"

"Dear me! I hope not. Your discoveries are generally very expensive, and
bring us in contact with such very odd people."

"This discovery shall not cost us a penny, and I don't know any people
so odd as not to comprehend it. Briefly it is this: To genius the
first requisite is heart; it is no requisite at all to talent. My dear
Caroline, Gordon has as much talent as any young man I know, but he
wants the first requisite of genius. I am not by any means sure that
Kenelm has genius, but there is no doubt that he has the first requisite
of genius,--heart. Heart is a very perplexing, wayward, irrational
thing; and that perhaps accounts for the general incapacity to
comprehend genius, while any fool can comprehend talent. My dear
Caroline, you know that it is very seldom, not more than once in three
years, that I presume to have a will of my own against a will of yours;
but should there come a question in which our son's heart is concerned,
then (speaking between ourselves) my will must govern yours."

"Sir Peter is growing more odd every day," said Lady Chillingly to
herself when left alone. "But he does not mean ill, and there are worse
husbands in the world."

Therewith she rang for her maid, gave requisite orders for the preparing
of Kenelm's room, which had not been slept in for many months, and then
consulted that functionary as to the adaptation of some dress of hers,
too costly to be laid aside, to the style of some dress less costly
which Lady Glenalvon had imported from Paris as _la derniere mode_.

On the very day on which Kenelm arrived at Exmundham, Chillingly Gordon
had received this letter from Mr. Geral