replied. "He seemed to me rather a
brainy person for his order."

"One for me," Lady Amesbury chuckled. "I don't care. If I chose to come
on the Stock Exchange, I've got brains enough to ruin most of you. But I
don't choose. I like to hear of the rest of you tearing yourselves to
pieces, though. If you could keep Dredlinton out of mischief for a year,
Mr. Phipps, I'd think you were the most wonderful man I ever met. He's a
bad lot, but I tolerate him because I love his wife."

Phipps scowled across the table to where Wingate's head was nearly
touching Josephine's.

"Lady Dredlinton seems to be achieving great popularity in every
direction," he said sourly.

"And a jolly good thing, too," Lady Amesbury declared. "If ever a woman
earned the right to kick the traces away for a bit, Josephine has. Don't
you mind anything I say, my dear," she added, as Josephine looked up at
the sound of her name. "You settle down to a nice comfortable flirtation,
if you want to. You owe it to yourself, all right, and then there's some
coming to you. And I'm your husband's aunt who tells you that."

"I'm not at all sure," Phipps observed, "that you don't underrate your
nephew's ability."

"The only thing I know about his ability," was the blunt reply, "is
his ability to borrow a few hundreds from any one fool enough to lend
it to him, and then invent excuses for not paying it back. He's good
at that, if you like. Still, don't let me set you against him, Mr.
Phipps. Every shilling he gets out of you and your company is so much
saved to the family."

Lady Amesbury, who, notwithstanding her apparent inconsequence, had a
keen eye for her guests, directed her conversation for a time into
another channel, and finally changed places with Sarah in order to come
into closer touch with a spiritualist from Sweden, who was on the lookout
for a medium. Sarah turned appealingly toward Wingate.

"Jimmy and I want to be taken to the theatre to-morrow night," she
announced. "He doesn't get any money till Wednesday, and I haven't
earned enough this week to pay my garage bill."

"I'll take you both," Wingate promised quickly, "if Lady Dredlinton will
make a fourth."

"Delightful," Josephine assented.

"I have a box at the Opera," Phipps announced, leaning forward. "Give me
the pleasure of entertaining you all."

Josephine shook her head.

"Tannhauser! I am sorry, Mr. Phipps, but I couldn't possibly stand it.
Ask us another time, won't you? To