d of!" exclaimed Lizzie, with energy. Mr. Emilius opened his
eyes, but did not contradict her assertion. "As you have mentioned
her name, Mr. Emilius, I must tell you. I have done everything for
that woman. You know how I treated her down in Scotland."

"With a splendid hospitality," said Mr. Emilius.

"Of course she did not pay for anything there."

"Oh, no." The idea of any one being called upon to pay for what one
ate and drank at a friend's house, was peculiarly painful to Mr.
Emilius.

"And I have paid for everything here. That is to say, we have made an
arrangement, very much in her favour. And she has borrowed large sums
of money from me."

"I am not at all surprised at that," said Mr. Emilius.

"And when that unfortunate girl, her niece, was to be married to poor
Sir Griffin Tewett, I gave her a whole service of plate."

"What unparalleled generosity!"

"Would you believe she has taken the whole for her own base purposes?
And then what do you think she has done?"

"My dear Lady Eustace, hardly anything would astonish me."

Lizzie suddenly found a difficulty in describing to her friend the
fact that Mrs. Carbuncle was endeavouring to turn her out of the
house, without also alluding to her own troubles about the robbery.
"She has actually told me," she continued, "that I must leave the
house without a day's warning. But I believe the truth is, that she
has run so much into debt that she cannot remain."

"I know that she is very much in debt, Lady Eustace."

"But she owed me some civility. Instead of that, she has treated me
with nothing but insolence. And why, do you think? It is all because
I would not allow her to take that poor, insane young woman to
Portray Castle."

"You don't mean that she asked to go there?"

"She did, though."

"I never heard such impertinence in my life,--never," said Mr.
Emilius, again opening his eyes and shaking his head.

"She proposed that I should ask them both down to Portray,
for--for--of course it would have been almost for ever. I don't know
how I should have got rid of them. And that poor young woman is mad,
you know;--quite mad. She never recovered herself after that morning.
Oh,--what I have suffered about that unhappy marriage, and the cruel,
cruel way in which Mrs. Carbuncle urged it on. Mr. Emilius, you can't
conceive the scenes which have been acted in this house during the
last month. It has been dreadful. I wouldn't go through such a time
again for