' said Lesbia, checking this gush
of sentiment.

She began to feel somehow that she was drifting from all her moorings,
that in accepting this invitation to Rood Hall she was allowing herself
to be ensnared into an alliance about which she was still doubtful. If
anything better had appeared in the prospect of her life--if any
worthier suitor had come forward, she would have whistled Mr. Smithson
down the wind; but no worthier suitor had offered himself. It was
Smithson or nothing. If she did not accept Smithson, she would go back
to Fellside heavily burdened with debt, and an obvious failure. She
would have run the gauntlet of a London season without definite result;
and this, to a young woman so impressed with her own transcendent
merits, was a most humiliating state of things.

Other people's names were suggested by Mr. Smithson and approved by
Lesbia, and a house party of about fourteen in all was made up. Mr.
Smithson's steam launch would comfortably accommodate that number. He
had a couple of barges for chance visitors, and kept an open table on
board them during the regatta.

The visit arranged, the next question was gowns. Lesbia had gowns enough
to have stocked a draper's shop; but then, as she and Lady Kirkbank
deplored, the difficulty was that she had worn them all, some as many as
three or four times. They were doubtless all marked and known. Some of
them had been described in the society papers. At Henley she would be
expected to wear something distinctly new, to introduce some new fashion
of gown or hat or parasol. No matter how ugly the new thing might be, so
long as it was startling; no matter how eccentric, provided it was
original.

'What am I to do?' asked Lesbia, despairingly.

'There is only one thing that can be done. We must go instantly to
Seraphine and insist upon her inventing something. If she has no idea
ready she must telegraph Worth and get him to send something over. Your
old things will do very well for Rood Hall. You have no end of pretty
gowns for morning and evening; but you must be original on the race
days. Your gowns will be in all the papers.'

'But I shall be only getting deeper into debt,' said Lesbia, with a
sigh.

'That can't be helped. If you go into society you must be properly
dressed. We'll go to Clanricarde Place directly after luncheon, and see
what that old harpy has to show us.'

Lesbia had a rather uncomfortable feeling about facing the fair
Seraphine, withou