om one to another and radiant
with the animation of success.

But one thing--at last--she had forgotten. She had forgotten to impose
any curb upon the voices round her. The Duchess and Lord Lackington were
sparring like a couple of children, and Montresor broke in from time to
time with his loud laugh and gruff throat voice. Meredith, the
Frenchman, Warkworth, and General Fergus were discussing a grand review
which had been held the day before. Delafield had moved round to the
back of Julie's chair, and she was talking to him, while all the time
her eyes were on General Fergus and her brain was puzzling as to how she
was to secure the five minutes' talk with him she wanted. He was one of
the intimates of the Commander-in-Chief. She herself had suggested to
Montresor, of course in Lady Henry's name, that he should be brought to
Bruton Street some Wednesday evening.

Presently there was a little shifting of groups. Julie saw that
Montresor and Captain Warkworth were together by the fireplace, that the
young man with his hands held out to the blaze and his back to her was
talking eagerly, while Montresor, looking outward into the room, his
great black head bent a little towards his companion, was putting sharp
little questions from time to time, with as few words as might be. Julie
understood that an important conversation was going on--that Montresor,
whose mind various friends of hers had been endeavoring to make up for
him, was now perhaps engaged in making it up for himself.

With a quickened pulse she turned to find General Fergus beside her.
What a frank and soldierly countenance!--a little roughly cut, with a
strong mouth slightly underhung, and a dogged chin, the whole lit by
eyes that were the chosen homes of truth, humanity, and will. Presently
she discovered, as they drew their chairs a little back from the circle,
that she, too, was to be encouraged to talk about Warkworth. The General
was, of course, intimately 'acquainted with his professional record; but
there were certain additional Indian opinions--a few incidents in the
young man's earlier career, including, especially, a shooting expedition
of much daring in the very district to which the important Mokembe
mission was now to be addressed, together with some quotations from
private letters of her own, or Lady Henry's, which Julie, with her usual
skill, was able to slip into his ear, all on the assumption, delicately
maintained, that she was merely talki