mother of nine. Friday is
one of his gorging dinner-parties, and who knows what may happen if she
pleases him? The kitchen maid says, I mean I hear, that she wears an
engaged ring already.'

'That is very bad,' said Merton, with sympathy. 'The dinner is on
Friday, you say?' and he made a note of the date.

'Yes, 15 Albany Grove, on the Regent's Canal.'

'You can think of nothing else--no weakness to work on?'

'No, sir, just her awful temper; I would save him from it, for _he_ has
another as bad. And besides hopes from him have kept me up so long, his
only relation, and times are so hard, and schooling and boots, and
everything so dear, and we so many in family.' Tears came into the poor
lady's eyes.

'I'll give the case my very best attention,' he said, shaking hands with
the client. To Merton's horror she tried, Heaven help her, to pass a
circular packet, wrapped in paper, into his hand. He evaded it. It was
a first interview, for which no charge was made. 'What can be done shall
be done, though I confess that I do not see my way,' and he accompanied
her downstairs to the street.

'I behaved like a cad with my chaff,' he said to himself, 'but hang me if
I see how to help her. And I rather admire that cook.'

He went into the inner room, wakened the sleeping partner, Logan, on the
sofa, and unfolded the case with every detail. 'What can we do, _que
faire_!'

'There's an exhibition of modern, mediaeval, ancient, and savage cookery
at Earl's Court, the Cookeries,' said Logan. 'Couldn't we seduce an
artist like Miss Blowser there, I mean _thither_ of course, the night
before the dinner, and get her up into the Great Wheel and somehow stop
the Wheel--and make her too late for her duties?'

'And how are you going to stop the Wheel?'

'Speak to the Man at the Wheel. Bribe the beggar.'

'Dangerous, and awfully expensive. Then think of all the other people on
the Wheel! Logan, _vous chassez de race_. The old Restalrig blood is in
your veins.'

'My ancestors nearly nipped off with a king, and why can't I carry off a
cook? Hustle her into a hansom--'

'Oh, bah! these are not modern methods.'

'_Il n'y a rien tel que d'enlever_,' said Logan.

'I never shall stain the cause with police-courts,' said Merton. 'It
would be fatal.'

'I've heard of a cook who fell on his sword when the fish did not come up
to time. Now a raid on the fish? She might fall on her carving knife
when they did not arr