stand her eyes. "Don't, mother," she said quietly. "Either you
take me for a fool or you are trying to show me that you have no
self-respect. I am not deceiving myself about what I'm doing."

Mrs. Presbury opened her lips to remonstrate, changed her mind, drew a
deep sigh. "It's frightful to be a woman," she said.

"To be a lady, Mr. Presbury would say," suggested Mildred.

After some discussion, they fixed upon Joseph Tilker as the best
available investigator of General Siddall. Tilker had been head clerk
for Henry Gower. He was now in for himself and had offered to look
after any legal business Mrs. Presbury might have without charging her.
He presently reported that there was not a doubt as to the wealth of
the little general. "There are all sorts of ugly stories about how he
made his money," said Tilker; "but all the great fortunes have a
scandalous history, and I doubt if Siddall's is any worse than the
others. I don't see how it well could be. Siddall has the reputation
of being a mean and cruel little tyrant. He is said to be pompous,
vain, ignorant--"

"Indeed he's not," cried Mrs. Presbury. "He's a rough diamond, but a
natural gentleman. I've met him."

"Well, he's rich enough, and that was all you asked me to find out,"
said Tilker. "But I must warn you, Mrs. Presbury, not to have any
business or intimate personal relations with him."

Mrs. Presbury congratulated herself on her wisdom in having come alone
to hear Tilker's report. She did not repeat any part of it to Mildred
except what he had said about the wealth. That she enlarged upon until
Mildred's patience gave out. She interrupted with a shrewd:

"Anything else, mamma? Anything about him personally?"

"We've got to judge him in that way for ourselves," replied Mrs.
Presbury. "You know how wickedly they lie about anyone who has
anything."

"I should like to read a full account of General Siddall," said Mildred
reflectively; "just to satisfy my curiosity."

Mrs. Presbury made no reply.

Presbury had decided that it was best to make no advance, but to wait
until they heard from Siddall. He let a week, ten days, go by; then
his impatience got the better of his shrewdness. He sought admittance
to the great man at the offices of the International Metals and
Minerals Company in Cedar Street. After being subjected to varied
indignities by sundry under-strappers, he received a message from the
general through a secretary: "The ge