he
Duke were wrong when they asked him to join. I knew he'd go over the
traces,--unless, indeed, he took his money and did nothing for it,
which is the way with some of those Radicals. I look upon him as
gone."

"He has gone."

"The devil go along with him, as you say in Ireland. But don't you be
such a fool as to ruin yourself for a crotchet of Monk's. It isn't
too late yet for you to hold back. To tell you the truth, Gresham
has said a word to me about it already. He is most anxious that you
should stay, but of course you can't stay and vote against us."

"Of course I cannot."

"I look upon you, you know, as in some sort my own child. I've tried
to bring other fellows forward who seemed to have something in them,
but I have never succeeded as I have with you. You've hit the thing
off, and have got the ball at your foot. Upon my honour, in the whole
course of my experience I have never known such good fortune as
yours."

"And I shall always remember how it began, Barrington," said Phineas,
who was greatly moved by the energy and solicitude of his friend.

"But, for God's sake, don't go and destroy it all by such mad
perversity as this. They mean to do something next session. Morrison
is going to take it up." Sir Walter Morrison was at this time
Secretary for Ireland. "But of course we can't let a fellow like Monk
take the matter into his own hands just when he pleases. I call it
d----d treachery."

"Monk is no traitor, Barrington."

"Men will have their own opinions about that. It's generally
understood that when a man is asked to take a seat in the Cabinet he
is expected to conform with his colleagues, unless something very
special turns up. But I am speaking of you now, and not of Monk. You
are not a man of fortune. You cannot afford to make ducks and drakes.
You are excellently placed, and you have plenty of time to hark back,
if you'll only listen to reason. All that Irish stump balderdash will
never be thrown in your teeth by us, if you will just go on as though
it had never been uttered."

Phineas could only thank his friend for his advice, which was at
least disinterested, and was good of its kind, and tell him that he
would think of it. He did think of it very much. He almost thought
that, were it to do again, he would allow Mr. Monk to go upon his
tour alone, and keep himself from the utterance of anything that so
good a judge as Erle could call stump balderdash. As he sat in his
arm-chair in his