word; but her arm remained
stretched out towards him, and her fingers did not cease to tremble.

"You do not understand!" said Lady Demolines, drawing herself back,
and looking, in her short open cloak, like a knight who has donned
his cuirass, but has forgotten to put on his leg-gear. And she shook
the bright ribbons of her cap, as a knight in his wrath shakes the
crest of his helmet. "You do not understand, Mr. Eames! What is it,
sir, that you do not understand?"

"There is some misconception, I mean," said Johnny.

"Mother!" said Madalina, turning her eyes from her recent lover to
her tender parent; trembling all over, but still keeping her hand
extended. "Mother!"

"My darling! But leave him to me, dearest. Compose yourself."

"'Twas the word that he said--this moment; before he pressed me to
his heart."

"I thought you were fainting," said Johnny.

"Sir!" And Lady Demolines, as she spoke, shook her crest, and glared
at him, and almost flew at him in her armour.

"It may be that nature has given way with me, and that I have been in
a dream," said Madalina.

"That which mine eyes saw was no dream," said Lady Demolines. "Mr
Eames, I have given to you the sweetest name that can fall from an
old woman's lips. I have called you my son."

"Yes, you did, I know. But, as I said before, there is some mistake.
I know how proud I ought to be, and how happy, and all that kind of
thing. But--" Then there came a screech from Madalina, which would
have awakened the dead, had there been any dead in that house. The
page and cook, however, took no notice of it, whether they were
awakened or not. And having screeched, Madalina stood erect upon the
floor, and she also glared upon her recreant lover. The dragon and
the tigress were there before him now, and he knew that it behoved
him to look to himself. As he had a battle to fight, might it not be
best to put a bold face upon it? "The truth is," said he, "that I
don't understand this kind of thing at all."

"Not understand it, sir?" said the dragon.

"Leave him to me, mother," said the tigress, shaking her head again,
but with a kind of shake differing from that which she had used
before. "This is my business, and I'll have it out for myself. If he
thinks I'm going to put up with his nonsense he's mistaken. I've been
straightforward and above board with you, Mr. Eames, and I expect to
be treated in the same way in return. Do you mean to tell my mother
that you deny tha