m, by whom he found himself welcomed with cordial
encouragement.

Presently, when he had shifted for a moment out of the nearest focus
of conversation, his host, who had been 'distributing himself,' as the
French say, amongst the various knots of talkers, came bustling up to
him. 'Er--Mr. Ashburn,' he began, 'I want you to know a very clever
young fellow here--known him from a boy--he's on the stage now, and
going to surprise us all some of these days. You'll like him. Come
along and I'll introduce him to you; he's very anxious to know _you_.'
And when Mark had followed him as he threaded his way across the room,
he found himself hurriedly introduced to the man with the cold light
eyes whom he had met at the Featherstones' on the day when he had
recognised Mabel Langton's portrait. Mr. Fladgate had already bustled
away again, and the two were left together in a corner of the room.
Dolly's revelations of the terrorism this man had exercised over her
had strengthened the prejudice and dislike Mark had felt on their
first meeting; he felt angry and a little uncomfortable now, at being
forced to come in contact with him, but there was no way of avoiding
it just then, and Caffyn himself was perfectly at his ease.

'I think we have met before--at Grosvenor Place,' he began blandly;
'but I dare say you have forgotten.'

'No,' said Mark, 'I remember you very well; and besides,' he added,
with a significance that he hoped would not be thrown away, 'I have
been hearing a good deal about you lately from the Langtons--from Miss
Langton, that is.'

'Ah!' said Caffyn; 'that would be flattering to most men, but when one
has the bad luck, like myself, to displease such a very impulsive
young lady as Miss Langton, the less she mentions you the better.'

'I may as well say,' returned Mark coldly, 'that, as to that
particular affair in which you were concerned, whatever my opinions
are, I formed them without assistance.'

'And you don't care to have them unsettled again by any plea for the
defence? That's very natural. Well, with Miss Langton's remarks to
guide me, I think I can guess what your own opinion of me is likely to
be just now. And I'm going to ask you, as a mere matter of fair play,
to hear my side of the question. You think that's very ridiculous, of
course?'

'I think we can do no good by discussing it any farther,' said Mark;
'we had better let the matter drop.'

'But you see,' urged Caffyn, 'as it is, the matter _