me as soon as you had
any suspicion of what was likely to happen. Not to do so was underhand.
I do not wish to employ strong language, but I do consider it
underhand. Shotover tells me he would have written if he had only
known. But, of course, in the present state of feeling, he was shut out
from it all. Ludovic did know, I presume. And, I am sorry to say it,
but I consider it very unhandsome of Ludovic not to have communicated
with me."

At this juncture Mr. Quayle desisted from contemplation of the family
portraits and approached the belligerents, threading his way carefully
between the many tables and chairs. There was much furniture, yet but
few ornaments, in Lady Louisa's boudoir. The young man's long neck was
directed slightly forward and his expression was one of polite inquiry.

"It is very warm this morning," he remarked parenthetically, "and as a
family we appear to feel it. You did me the honour to refer to me just
now, I believe, my dear father? Since my two younger sisters have been
banished it has happily become possible to hear both you, and myself,
speak. You were saying?"

"That you might very properly have written and told me about this
business, and given me an opportunity of expressing my opinion before
things reached a head."

Mr. Quayle drew forward a chair and seated himself with mild
deliberation. Lord Fallowfeild began to fidget. "Very clever fellow,
Ludovic," he said to himself. "Wonderfully cool head"--and he became
suspicious of his own wisdom in having made direct appeal to a person
thus distinguished.

"I might have written, my dear father. I admit that I might. But there
were difficulties. To begin with, I--in this particular--shared
Shotover's position. Louisa had not seen fit to honour me with her
confidence.--I beg your pardon, Louisa, you were saying?--And so, you
see, I really hadn't anything to write about."

"But--but--this young man"--Lord Fallowfeild was sensible of a singular
reluctance to mention the name of his proposed son-in-law--"this young
Calmady, you know, he's an intimate friend of yours----"

"Difficulty number two. For I doubted how you would take the
matter----"

"Did you, though?" said Lord Fallowfeild, with an appreciable smoothing
of crumples and puckers.

"I'm extremely attached to Dickie Calmady. And I did not want to put a
spoke in his wheel."

"Of course not, my dear boy, of course not. Nasty unpleasant business
putting spokes in other men's whe