ing our
right to carry the matter beyond the four walls of this room. I am not
referring now to Mr. Brinkworth's chance of clearing himself from an
odious suspicion which rests upon him, and upon another Person present.
That is an after-matter. The object immediately before us--so far as a
woman can pretend to understand it--is to establish my step-daughter's
right to call Mr. Brinkworth to account in the character of his wife. If
the result, so far, fails to satisfy us in that particular, we shall not
hesitate to appeal to a Court of Law." She leaned back in her chair, and
opened her fan, and looked round her with the air of a woman who called
society to witness that she had done her duty.

An expression of pain crossed Blanche's face while her step-mother
was speaking. Lady Lundie took her hand for the second time. Blanche
resolutely and pointedly withdrew it--Sir Patrick noticing the action
with special interest. Before Mr. Moy could say a word in answer, Arnold
centred the general attention on himself by suddenly interfering in the
proceedings. Blanche looked at him. A bright flash of color appeared on
her face--and left it again. Sir Patrick noted the change of color--and
observed her more attentively than ever. Arnold's letter to his wife,
with time to help it, had plainly shaken her ladyship's influence over
Blanche.

"After what Lady Lundie has said, in my wife's presence," Arnold burst
out, in his straightforward, boyish way, "I think I ought to be allowed
to say a word on my side. I only want to explain how it was I came to
go to Craig Fernie at all--and I challenge Mr. Geoffrey Delamayn to deny
it, if he can."

His voice rose at the last words, and his eyes brightened with
indignation as he looked at Geoffrey.

Mr. Moy appealed to his learned friend.

"With submission, Sir Patrick, to your better judgment," he said, "this
young gentleman's proposal seems to be a little out of place at the
present stage of the proceedings."

"Pardon me," answered Sir Patrick. "You have yourself described
the proceedings as representing an informal inquiry. An informal
proposal--with submission to _your_ better judgment, Mr. Moy--is hardly
out of place, under those circumstances, is it?"

Mr. Moy's inexhaustible modesty gave way, without a struggle. The answer
which he received had the effect of puzzling him at the outset of the
investigation. A man of Sir Patrick's experience must have known that
Arnold's mere asserti