t regretted that the edict of banishment had gone forth.
It would, perhaps, have been better to have left Mr. Saul to go about
the parish, and to have laughed Fanny out of her fancy. But it was too
late now for that, and Mrs. Clavering said nothing further on the
subject to any one.

On the day following his visit to the farm-house, Harry Clavering was
unwell--too unwell to go back to London; and on the next day he was ill
in bed. Then it was that he got his mother to write to Mrs. Burton; and
then also he told his mother a part of his troubles. When the letter was
written he was very anxious to see it, and was desirous that it should
be specially worded, and so written as to make Mrs. Burton certain that
he was in truth too ill to come to London, though not ill enough to
create alarm. "Why not simply let me say that you are kept here for a
day or two?" asked Mrs. Clavering.

"Because I promised that I would be in Onslow Terrace to-morrow, and she
must not think that I would stay away if I could avoid it."

Then Mrs. Clavering closed the letter and directed it. When she had done
that, and put on it the postage-stamp, she asked in a voice that was
intended to be indifferent, whether Florence was in London; and, hearing
that she was so, expressed her surprise that the letter should not be
written to Florence.

"My engagement was with Mrs. Burton," said Harry.

"I hope there is nothing wrong between you and Florence?" said his
mother. To this question Harry made no immediate answer, and Mrs.
Clavering was afraid to press it. But after a while he returned to the
subject himself. "Mother," he said, "things are wrong between Florence
and me."

"Oh, Harry; what has she done?"

"It is rather what have I done! As for her, she has simply trusted
herself to a man who has been false to her."

"Dear Harry, do not say that. What is it that you mean? It is not true
about Lady Ongar?"

"Then you have heard, mother. Of course I do not know what you have
heard, but it can be hardly worse than the truth. But you must not blame
her. Whatever fault there may be, is all mine." Then he told her much of
what had occurred in Bolton Street. We may suppose that he said nothing
of that mad caress--nothing, perhaps, of the final promise which he made
to Julia as he last passed out of her presence; but he did give her to
understand that he had in some way returned to his old passion for the
woman whom he had first loved.

I should descr