d standing with the cigar in
his mouth and his back to the fire. "Somebody has been bullying old
Buffle, I suppose. After all he has been up at the Treasure to-day,"
said Eames to himself. But he did not stir till the messenger had
been to him, nor even then at once. "All right, Rafferty," he said;
"I'll go in just now." Then he took half-a-dozen more whiffs from the
cigar, threw the remainder into the fire, and opened the door which
communicated between his room and Sir Raffle's.

The great man was standing with two unopened epistles in his hand.
"Eames," said he, "here are letters--" Then he stopped himself, and
began upon another subject. "Did I not give express orders that I
would have no smoking in the office?"

"I think Mr. Kissing said something about it, sir."

"Mr. Kissing! It was not Mr. Kissing at all. It was I. I gave the order
myself."

"You'll find it began with Mr. Kissing."

"It did not begin with Mr. Kissing; it began and ended with me. What
are you going to do, sir?" John Eames stepped towards the bell, and
his hand was already on the bell-pull.

"I was going to ring for the papers, sir."

"And who told you to ring for the papers? I don't want the papers.
The papers won't show anything. I suppose my word may be taken
without the papers. Since you're so fond of Mr. Kissing--"

"I'm not fond of Mr. Kissing at all."

"You'll have to go back to him, and let somebody come here who will
not be too independent to obey my orders. Here are two most important
letters have been lying here all day, instead of being sent up to me
at the Treasury."

"Of course they have been lying there. I thought you were at the
club."

"I told you I should go to the Treasury. I have been there all
morning with the chancellor,"--when Sir Raffle spoke officially of
the chancellor he was not supposed to mean the Lord Chancellor--"and
here I find letters which I particularly wanted lying upon my desk
now. I must put an end to this kind of thing. I must, indeed. If you
like the outer office better say so at once, and you can go."

"I'll think about it, Sir Raffle."

"Think about it! What do you mean by thinking about it? But I can't
talk about that now. I'm very busy, and shall be here till past
seven. I suppose you can stay?"

"All night, if you wish it, sir."

"Very well. That will do for the present.--I wouldn't have had these
letters delayed for twenty pounds."

"I don't suppose it would have mattered one stra