, so that it seemed evident that
he smarted under some recent grievance. The raillery of our host, not
too nice or delicate, soon spurred him to a discovery of his complaint.
He asked nothing better than to be urged to a disclosure.

"Neither rank, nor friendship, nor service," he said, smiting the table,
"are enough to gain the smallest favour from the King. All goes to the
women; they have but to ask to have. I prayed the King to give me for a
cousin of mine a place in the Life Guards that was to be vacant, and
he--by Heaven, he promised! Then comes Nell, and Nell wants it for a
friend--and Nell has it for a friend--and I go empty!"

I had started when he spoke of the Life Guards, and sat now in a state
of great disturbance. Darrell also, as I perceived, was very uneasy, and
made a hasty effort to alter the course of the conversation; but Mr
Jermyn would not have it.

"Who is the happy--the new happy man, that is Mistress Nell's friend?"
he asked, smiling.

"Some clod from the country," returned the Earl; "his name, they say, is
Dale."

I felt my heart beating, but I trust that I looked cool enough as I
leant across and said,

"Your lordship is misinformed. I have the best of reasons for saying
so."

"The reasons may be good, sir," he retorted with a stare, "but they are
not evident."

"I am myself just named to a commission in the King's Life Guards, and
my name is Dale," said I, restraining myself to a show of composure, for
I felt Darrell's hand on my arm.

"By my faith, then, you're the happy man," sneered Carford. "I
congratulate you on your----"

"Stay, stay, Carford," interposed Mr Jermyn.

"On your--godmother," said Carford.

"You're misinformed, my lord," I repeated fiercely, although by now a
great fear had come upon me. I knew whom they meant by "Nell."

"By God, sir, I'm not misinformed," said he.

"By God, my lord," said I--though I had not been wont to swear--"By God,
my lord, you are."

Our voices had risen in anger; a silence fell on the party, all turning
from their talk to listen to us. Carford's face went red when I gave him
the lie so directly and the more fiercely because, to my shame and
wonder, I had begun to suspect that what he said was no lie. But I
followed up the attack briskly.

"Therefore, my lord," I said, "I will beg of you to confess your error,
and withdraw what you have said."

He burst into a laugh.

"If I weren't ashamed to take a favour from such a hand, I