'See me righted?' thought Bella. And then repeated aloud in a tone of
astonishment: 'see me righted, sir?'

'Ay, ay!' said Mr Boffin. 'See you righted. Send Mr Rokesmith here, you
sir.'

Bella would have been lost in perplexity if there had been pause
enough; but the servant found Mr Rokesmith near at hand, and he almost
immediately presented himself.

'Shut the door, sir!' said Mr Boffin. 'I have got something to say to
you which I fancy you'll not be pleased to hear.'

'I am sorry to reply, Mr Boffin,' returned the Secretary, as, having
closed the door, he turned and faced him, 'that I think that very
likely.'

'What do you mean?' blustered Mr Boffin.

'I mean that it has become no novelty to me to hear from your lips what
I would rather not hear.'

'Oh! Perhaps we shall change that,' said Mr Boffin with a threatening
roll of his head.

'I hope so,' returned the Secretary. He was quiet and respectful; but
stood, as Bella thought (and was glad to think), on his manhood too.

'Now, sir,' said Mr Boffin, 'look at this young lady on my arm.

Bella involuntarily raising her eyes, when this sudden reference was
made to herself, met those of Mr Rokesmith. He was pale and seemed
agitated. Then her eyes passed on to Mrs Boffin's, and she met the look
again. In a flash it enlightened her, and she began to understand what
she had done.

'I say to you, sir,' Mr Boffin repeated, 'look at this young lady on my
arm.

'I do so,' returned the Secretary.

As his glance rested again on Bella for a moment, she thought there was
reproach in it. But it is possible that the reproach was within herself.

'How dare you, sir,' said Mr Boffin, 'tamper, unknown to me, with this
young lady? How dare you come out of your station, and your place in my
house, to pester this young lady with your impudent addresses?'

'I must decline to answer questions,' said the Secretary, 'that are so
offensively asked.'

'You decline to answer?' retorted Mr Boffin. 'You decline to answer,
do you? Then I'll tell you what it is, Rokesmith; I'll answer for you.
There are two sides to this matter, and I'll take 'em separately. The
first side is, sheer Insolence. That's the first side.'

The Secretary smiled with some bitterness, as though he would have said,
'So I see and hear.'

'It was sheer Insolence in you, I tell you,' said Mr Boffin, 'even to
think of this young lady. This young lady was far above YOU. This young
lady was no match for Y