le as marble with a growing terror for which she could ill
have accounted.

"Florimel!" said Malcolm solemnly, calling his sister by her name for
the first time.

"You insolent wretch!" she cried, panting. "What right have you, if you
_be_, as you say, my base-born brother, to call me by my name?"

"Florimel!" repeated Malcolm--and the voice was like the voice of her
father--"I have done what I could to serve you."

"And I want no more such service," she returned, beginning to tremble.

"But you have driven me almost to extremities," he went on, heedless of
her interruption. "Beware of doing so quite."

"Will nobody take pity on me?" said Florimel, and looked round
imploringly. Then, finding herself ready to burst into tears, she
gathered all her pride, and stepping up to Malcolm, looked him in the
face, and said, "Pray, sir, is this house yours or mine?"

"Mine," answered Malcolm. "I am the marquis of Lossie, and while I am
your elder brother and the head of the family you shall never with my
consent marry that base man--a man it would blast me to the soul to call
brother."

Liftore uttered a fierce imprecation.

"If you dare give breath to another such word in my sister's presence I
will have you gagged," said Malcolm.--"If my sister marries him," he
continued, turning again to Florimel, "not one shilling shall she take
with her beyond what she may happen to have in her purse at the moment.
She is in my power, and I will use it to the utmost to protect her from
that man."

"Proof!" cried Liftore sullenly. But Florimel gazed with pale dilated
eyes in the face of the speaker. She knew his words were true. Her soul
assured her of it.

"To my sister," answered Malcolm, "I will give all the proof she may
please to require--to Lord Liftore I will not even repeat my assertion:
to him I will give no shadow of proof. I will but cast him out of my
house.--Stoat, order horses for Lady Bellair."

"Gien ye please, sir, my lord," replied Stoat, "the Lossie Airms' horses
is ordered a'ready for Lady Clementina."

"Will my Lady Clementina oblige me by yielding her horses to Lady
Bellair?" said Malcolm, turning to her.

"Certainly, my lord," answered Clementina.

"You, I trust, my lady," said Malcolm, "will stay a little longer with
my sister."

Lady Bellair came up. "My lord," she said, "is this the marquis or the
fisherman's way of treating a lady?"

"Neither. But do not drive me to give the rein to my tongue. L