said, any gentleman should continue to urge Lawless to give the toast to
which I object, I must perforce consider that he wishes to insult me."

As I concluded, there was a murmur of applause, and Archer and one or
two others turned to Lawless, declaring it was quite impossible to
press the matter further after what I had said; when Wilford, in a cold,
sarcastic tone of voice, observed: "I am sorry Mr. Fairlegh's _last_
argument should have failed in convincing me, as easily as it seems to
have done some others of the party; such, however, unfortunately being
the case, I must repeat, even at the risk of incurring a thing so
terrible as that gentleman's displeasure, my decided opinion that
Lawless, having informed us he was going to drink a particular toast,
should not allow himself to be bullied out of it, in compliance with any
man's humour".

This speech, as it might be expected, produced great excitement; I
sprang to my feet (an example followed by several of the party), and was
about to make an angry reply, when Oaklands, who up to this moment had
taken no part in the discussion, but sat sipping his wine with his usual
air of listless contentment, apparently indifferent to, if not wholly
unconscious of, all that was going on, now rose from his seat, and
having obtained silence said: "Really, gentlemen, all this confusion
appears to me very unnecessary, when a word from our host will end it.
Fairlegh has asked you not to propose a certain toast; it only remains
for you, Lawless, to say, whether you intend to do so or not."

Thus urged, Lawless replied, "Eh? no, certainly not; Frank Fairlegh's
a trump, and I would not do anything to annoy him for more than I can
tell: besides, when I come to think of it, I believe he was right, and
I was wrong--but you see, women are a kind of cattle I don't clearly
understand--if it was a horse now----"

~169~~A burst of laughter at this characteristic remark drowned the
conclusion of the speech, but the announcement that the toast was given
up appeared to produce general satisfaction; for, since I had spoken,
the popular opinion had been decidedly in my favour.

"The cause of this little interruption to the harmony of the evening
being removed," resumed Oaklands, "suppose we see whether its effects
may not as easily be got rid of. Every man, I take it, has a right to
express his own opinion, and I think Fairlegh must allow that he was a
little hasty in presupposing, that by so