oreness
was not false in its mysterious forebodings. Eames, on the evening
after his dinner at Pawkins's, had seen the earl, and explained to
him that he could not leave town till the Saturday evening; but that
he could remain over the Tuesday. He must be at his office by twelve
on Wednesday, and could manage to do that by an early train from
Guestwick.

"Very well, Johnny," said the earl, talking to his young friend with
the bedroom candle in his hand, as he was going up to dress. "Then
I'll tell you what; I've been thinking of it. I'll ask Dale to come
over to dinner on Tuesday; and if he'll come, I'll explain the whole
matter to him myself. He's a man of business, and he'll understand.
If he won't come, why then you must go over to Allington, and find
him, if you can, on the Tuesday morning; or I'll go to him myself,
which will be better. You mustn't keep me now, as I am ever so much
too late."

Eames did not attempt to keep him, but went away feeling that the
whole matter was being arranged for him in a very wonderful way. And
when he got to Allington he found that the squire had accepted the
earl's invitation. Then he declared to himself that there was no
longer any possibility of retractation for him. Of course he did not
wish to retract. The one great longing of his life was to call Lily
Dale his own. But he felt afraid of the squire,--that the squire
would despise him and snub him, and that the earl would perceive that
he had made a mistake when he saw how his client was scorned and
snubbed. It was arranged that the earl was to take the squire into
his own room for a few minutes before dinner, and Johnny felt that he
would be hardly able to stand his ground in the drawing-room when the
two old men should make their appearance together.

He got on very well with Lady Julia, who gave herself no airs, and
made herself very civil. Her brother had told her the whole story,
and she felt as anxious as he did to provide Lily with another
husband in place of that horrible man Crosbie. "She has been very
fortunate in her escape," she said to her brother; "very fortunate."
The earl agreed with this, saying that in his opinion his own
favourite Johnny would make much the nicer lover of the two. But Lady
Julia had her doubts as to Lily's acquiescence. "But, Theodore, he
must not speak to Miss Lilian Dale herself about it yet a while."

"No," said the earl, "not for a month or so."

"He will have a better chance if he