row; fourth from the end. You
can see his face now. Look!'

'Otis Yeere! Of all the improbable and impossible people! I don't
believe you.'

'Hsh! Wait till Mrs. Tarkass begins murdering Milton Wellings; and I'll
tell you all about it. S-s-ss! That woman's voice always reminds me of
an Underground train coming into Earl's Court with the brakes on. Now
listen. It is really Otis Yeere.'

'So I see, but does it follow that he is your property!'

'He is! By right of trove. I found him, lonely and unbefriended, the
very next night after our talk, at the Dugald Delanes' burra-khana. I
liked his eyes, and I talked to him. Next day he called. Next day we
went for a ride together, and to-day he's tied to my 'richshaw-wheels
hand and foot. You'll see when the concert's over. He doesn't know I'm
here yet.'

'Thank goodness you haven't chosen a boy. What are you going to do with
him, assuming that you've got him?'

'Assuming, indeed! Does a woman do I ever make a mistake in that sort of
thing? First' Mrs. Hauksbee ticked off the items ostentatiously on her
little gloved fingers 'First, my dear, I shall dress him properly. At
present his raiment is a disgrace, and he wears a dress-shirt like
a crumpled sheet of the Pioneer. Secondly, after I have made him
presentable, I shall form his manners his morals are above reproach.'

'You seem to have discovered a great deal about him considering the
shortness of your acquaintance.'

'Surely you ought to know that the first proof a man gives of his
interest in a woman is by talking to her about his own sweet self.
If the woman listens without yawning, he begins to like her. If she
flatters the animal's vanity, he ends by adoring her.'

'In some cases.'

'Never mind the exceptions. I know which one you are thinking of.
Thirdly, and lastly, after he is polished and made pretty, I shall, as
you said, be his guide, philosopher, and friend, and he shall become a
success as great a success as your friend. I always wondered how
that man got on. Did The Mussuck come to you with the Civil List and,
dropping on one knee no, two knees, a la Gibbon hand it to you and say,
"Adorable angel, choose your friend's appointment"?'

'Lucy, your long experiences of the Military Department have demoralised
you. One doesn't do that sort of thing on the Civil Side.'

'No disrespect meant to Jack's Service, my dear. I only asked for
information. Give me three months, and see what changes I shall work