w that you and she are great friends; and it
is a good thing that the child should have some one to keep her company;
perhaps she is a little too much alone. Well, what do you wish to say
about her? You run no risk with me. You will not be misunderstood. I
know you are not likely to say anything unkind about Natalie."

"Unkind!" she exclaimed; and now she had recovered herself somewhat.
"Who could do that? Oh no, my dear friend; oh no!"

Here was another awkward pause.

"My dear Madame Potecki," said Mr. Lind, with a smile, "shall I speak
for you? You do not like to say what you have come to say. Shall I speak
for you? This is it, is it not? You have become aware of that
entanglement that Natalie has got into. Very well. Perhaps she has told
you. Perhaps she has told you also that I have forbidden her to have any
communication with--well, let us speak frankly--Mr. Brand. Very well.
You go with her to the South Kensington Museum; you meet Mr. Brand
there. Naturally you think if that comes to my ears I shall suspect you
of having planned the meeting; and you would rather come and assure me
that you had nothing to do with it. Is it so?"

"My dear friend," said Madame Potecki, quickly, "I did not come to you
about myself at all! What am I? What matters what happens to an old
woman like me? It is not about myself, it is about Natalie that I have
come to you. Ah, the dear, beautiful child!--how can one see her
unhappy, and not try to do something? Why should she be unhappy? She is
young, beautiful, loving; my dear friend, do you wonder that she has a
sweetheart?--and one who is so worthy of her, too: one who is not
selfish, who has courage, who will be kind to her. Then I said to
myself, 'Ah, what a pity to have father and daughter opposed to each
other!' Why might not one step in and say, 'Come, and be friends. You
love each other: do not have this coldness that makes a young heart so
miserable!'"

She had talked quickly and eagerly at last; she was trembling with
excitement, she had her eyes fixed on his face to catch the first
symptom of acquiescence.

But, on the contrary, Mr. Lind remained quite impassive, and he said,
coldly,

"This is a different matter altogether, Madame Potecki. I do not blame
you for interfering; but I must tell you at once that your interference
is not likely to be of much use. You see, there are reasons which I
cannot explain to you, but which are very serious, why any proposal of
marriag