in spite of my
advice. I must request you, George, to abstain from saying anything of
the kind again."

George refused an invitation to inspect a new fowl-run, and said that he
preferred to sit and think over things. Amongst other thoughts, it
occurred to him that his niece did not in all probability have much of a
time. Where he sat, he could hear faintly the sound of the piano in the
drawing-room. It was obviously something of Grieg's, and appallingly
difficult. He was glad that he had not got to play it, and was merely an
audience. He had chosen the better part. After all, Ruth had her music
to occupy her, and she played tennis with the Vicarage girls, and what
else could she want? He was just dropping off to sleep when the
cessation of the music roused him again. A moment later his niece stood
before him.

She was a tall girl, and carried herself well. Most people would have
agreed with her uncle's estimation of her looks. She wore no hat, and
her face was certainly slightly tanned.

"Uncle George," she said, "I want you to do something."

"Not tennis," said George sleepily. "Nothing violent. After tea,
perhaps, when it's cooler."

"That's not it at all. Now listen. When you're at the House, you have
tea on the Terrace sometimes, don't you?"

"Sometimes. Whisky-and-soda sometimes. What do you want?"

"You can ask people to come and have tea on the Terrace, can't you?
Well, you've got to ask me. Next Tuesday, please. And you've got to
persuade Aunt Jane to let me go, too."

"I'm not so sure about that," said George. "I've just been getting into
a row about you. I'm not at all sure that I'm not a bad influence, and
that any proposal of mine would not be vetoed."

"You can do it all right," said the girl decisively, "if you go the
right way about it. Say that it's historical. I mean that your silly old
House of Commons is historical. It would have a great educational value
for me. You could show me where Chatham stood when he made his last
grand speech, and fell down in the middle of it."

"That happened to be in another place, to wit, the House of Lords."

"It's all the same. And rub it in a bit about Burke--she's keen on
Burke. Keep up a good strong educational line, and Aunt Jane will be
glad to let me go."

"Very well. I'll do what I can. Next Tuesday at four o'clock. Tell me
what time your train gets to Euston, and I'll meet it."

Ruth looked away from him, and appeared to be addressing one of the