Her Majesty relies upon her faithful subjects to protect the Sultan
against the encroachments of Russia.'

His manners and his accent were alike more dignified than they had been
when he addressed the rustic crowd. It could be seen that he had one
manner for the kitchen and another for the parlour.

'At last!' said the General, half under his breath. 'At last! Well,
everybody has seen it coming, and there----' he went on, turning upon
his heel and speaking in a raised voice, 'there is your chance, Polson.
You're a lucky dog, not even to have your commission from your
agent's hands, and yet to be on the edge of the biggest campaign since
Waterloo.'

A lad of three-and-twenty had risen from a seat in the corner of the
room at the moment of John Jervase's entry. He had risen so hastily that
he had overturned half a set of chessmen from the board on which he had
been playing, into the lap of a pretty girl, his partner in the game;
but he had listened so intently, from the General's first question, that
he was unconscious of that slight mishap. He walked into the broader
light which shone beneath the central lamp, and asked eagerly:

'There's no mistake about that, Dad? There's no mistake about it?'

The speaker was Jervase's son, as a stranger seeing them under the same
roof would have been ready to swear at sight. He was taller than his
father by a good four inches; and the family resemblance, striking as it
was, did not pierce so deep as the expression of the face. The father's
blunt features were softened in the boy's, and though the look of
energy was there, it was altogether lifted and spiritualised--possibly,
perhaps, by the intense feeling of the moment.

'And there'll be no mistake about my commission?' the young man asked.
'There's no fear of any delay, or any official nonsense?'

'I sent my cheque to the agent before I left the town,' his father
answered, 'and I expect you'll get your call to boot and saddle within a
day or two at the outside.'

The pretty girl who had been playing chess with the young man in the
corner laid down the pieces which had fallen in her lap. She placed them
on the board, with a meaningless precision, and looked straight before
her with wide eyes, and a face which had slowly grown paler and more
pale.

'Polson, my boy,' said the General, 'I congratulate you. You are a lucky
fellow.' He held out his right hand, and as the young man grasped it,
he laid his left upon his shoulder.