xplanations had been given, Sir Patrick patiently
reverted to the object of his visit to Holchester House. On the first
occasion when he mentioned Anne's name he observed that Mr. Marchwood
became, from that moment, specially interested in what he was saying.

"Do you happen to be acquainted with the lady?" he asked

"I only know her as the cause of a very strange proceeding, this
morning, in that room." He pointed to Lord Holchester's bedroom as he
spoke.

"Are you at liberty to mention what the proceeding was?"

"Hardly--even to an old friend like you--unless I felt it a matter of
duty, on my part, to state the circumstances. Pray go on with what you
were saying to me. You were on the point of telling me what brought you
to this house."

Without a word more of preface, Sir Patrick told him the news of
Geoffrey's marriage to Anne.

"Married!" cried Mr. Marchwood. "Are you sure of what you say?"

"I am one of the witnesses of the marriage."

"Good Heavens! And Lord Holchester's lawyer has left the house!"

"Can I replace him? Have I, by any chance justified you in telling me
what happened this morning in the next room?"

"Justified me? You have left me no other alternative. The doctors are
all agreed in dreading apoplexy--his lordship may die at any moment.
In the lawyer's absence, I must take it on myself. Here are the facts.
There is the codicil to Lord Holchester's Will which is still unsigned."

"Relating to his second son?"

"Relating to Geoffrey Delamayn, and giving him (when it is once
executed) a liberal provision for life."

"What is the object in the way of his executing it?"

"The lady whom you have just mentioned to me."

"Anne Silvester!"

"Anne Silvester--now (as you tell me) Mrs. Geoffrey Delamayn. I can
only explain the thing very imperfectly. There are certain painful
circumstances associated in his lordship's memory with this lady,
or with some member of her family. We can only gather that he did
something--in the early part of his professional career--which was
strictly within the limits of his duty, but which apparently led to very
sad results. Some days since he unfortunately heard (either through Mrs.
Glenarm or through Mrs. Julius Delamayn) of Miss Silvester's appearance
at Swanhaven Lodge. No remark on the subject escaped him at the time.
It was only this morning, when the codicil giving the legacy to Geoffrey
was waiting to be executed, that his real feeling in the matter came