, which set every nerve in his body tingling. It was
a challenge to a companionship, and, as he led on the triumphant
Anstruther, he deeply regretted the absence of that most necessary
organ,--an eye in the back of the head. He was dimly aware that his
beautiful neighbor was very leisurely drinking the peace offering of the
susceptible son of Mars. "I will bet hundreds to ha'pennies she speaks
English!" quickly reflected the now aroused Major.

"You astound me, Anstruther," the Major said. "Not a lawful child! Some
Eurasian legacy--a relic of the old days of the Pagoda Tree! Why, the
old commissioner always was a woman hater, and absolutely hostile to all
social influences!" The Captain was now stealing longing glances at the
willowy figure of the beautiful woman whose glistening dark brown eyes
were turned to him with a languid glance, as Alan Hawke leaned forward.
To prolong the sight of that bewitching half profile, with the fair, low
brows, the velvet cheeks, a Provencale flush tinting them, the parted
lips a dainty challenge speaking, and the rich masses of dark brown hair
nobly crowning her regal outlines, Anstruther yielded to the spell and
babbled on. "The whole thing is a strange melange of official business
and dying gossip!" dreamily said Anstruther with his eyes straying over
the ivory throat, the superbly modeled bust and perfect figure of the
young Venus Victrix.

He was duly rewarded by a glance of secret intelligence when he leaned
back, dreamily closing his eyes. "You see, they were going to make old
Hugh Fraser or Hugh Johnstone, as he is now called, a baronet for some
secret services to the Crown of an important nature, rendered about the
time when mad Hodson piled up the whole princely succession to the House
of Oude in a trophy of naked corpsess pistoling them with his own hand."
He ordered a third bottle of Pommery, with a wave of his hand, and
proceeded: "Of course, you know, Her Majesty's Government always closely
investigate the social antecedents of the nominee in such cases. The
change of name is all right; it is regularly entered at Herald's College
and all that sort of thing, but the Chief has heard of the sudden
appearance of this beautiful daughter. Now, old Johnstone surely never
looked the way of woman in India! It's true that he went back about
twenty years ago to England on a two years' leave. He has lived the life
of a splendid recluse in his magnificent old bungalow on the Chandnee