ke them--some of
them," he added.

"Who is my friend?" asked Keith.

"Her name was Alice Yorke," he replied, with his eyes on Keith's face.

At the name another face sprang to Keith's mind. The eyes were brown,
not blue, and the face was the fresh face of a young girl. Yet
Keith accepted.

Rhodes did not tell him that Mrs. Lancaster had not accepted their
invitation until after she had heard that he was to be invited. Nor did
he tell him that she had authorized him to subscribe largely to the
stock of the new syndicate.

On reaching the station they were met by a rich equipage with two
liveried servants, and, after a short drive through beautiful country,
they turned into a fine park, and presently drove up before an imposing
old country house; for "The Keep" was one of the finest mansions in all
that region. It was also one of the most expensive. It had broken its
owners to run it. But this was nothing to Creamer of Creamer, Crustback
& Company; at least, it was nothing to Mrs. Creamer, or to Mrs. Rhodes,
who was her daughter. She had plans, and money was nothing to her.
Rhodes was manifestly pleased at Keith's exclamations of appreciation as
they drove through the park with its magnificent trees, its coppices and
coverts, its stretches of emerald sward and roll of gracious hills, and
drew up at the portal of the mansion. Yet he was inclined to be a little
apologetic about it, too.

"This is rather too rich for me," he said, between a smile and a sigh.
"Somehow, I began too late."

It was a noble old hall into which he ushered Keith, the wainscoting
dark with age, and hung with trophies of many a chase and forgotten
field. A number of modern easy-chairs and great rich rugs gave it an air
of comfort, even if they were not altogether harmonious.

Keith did not see Mrs. Rhodes till the company were all assembled in the
drawing-room for dinner. She was a rather pretty woman, distinctly
American in face and voice, but in speech more English than any one
Keith had seen since landing. Her hair and speech were arranged in the
extreme London fashion. She was "awfully keen on" everything she
fancied, and found most things English "ripping." She greeted Keith with
somewhat more formality than he had expected from Grinnell Rhodes's
wife, and introduced him to Colonel Campbell, a handsome,
broad-shouldered man, as "an American," which Keith thought rather
unnecessary, since no one could have been in doubt about it.

Kei