y not."

"But I doubt whether Sir Thomas or Lady Tringle would be at all
inclined to make me welcome. As to the distance, I can walk that
easily enough, and if the door is slammed in my face I can walk back
again."

Thus it was resolved that early on the following morning after
breakfast Isadore Hamel should go across the lake and make his way up
to Glenbogie.

CHAPTER XIX.

ISADORE HAMEL IS ASKED TO LUNCH.

On the following morning, the morning of Monday, 2nd September,
Isadore Hamel started on his journey. He had thought much about the
journey before he made it. No doubt the door had been slammed in his
face in London. He felt quite conscious of that, and conscious also
that a man should not renew his attempt to enter a door when it has
been once slammed in his face. But he understood the circumstances
nearly as they had happened,--except that he was not aware how far
the door had been slammed by Lady Tringle without any concurrence
on the part of Sir Thomas. But the door had, at any rate, not been
slammed by Lucy. The only person he had really wished to see within
that house had been Lucy Dormer; and he had hitherto no reason for
supposing that she would be unwilling to receive him. Her face had
been sweet and gracious when she saw him in the Park. Was he to deny
himself all hope of any future intercourse with her because Lady
Tringle had chosen to despise him? He must make some attempt. It was
more than probable, no doubt, that this attempt would be futile.
The servant at Glenbogie would probably be as well instructed as
the servant in Queen's Gate. But still a man has to go on and do
something, if he means to do anything. There could be no good in
sitting up at Drumcaller, at one side of the lake, and thinking of
Lucy Dormer far away, at the other side. He had not at all made up
his mind that he would ask Lucy to be his wife. His professional
income was still poor, and she, as he was aware, had nothing. But
he felt it to be incumbent upon him to get nearer to her if it were
possible, and to say something to her if the privilege of speech
should be accorded to him.

He walked down to Callerfoot, refusing the loan of the Colonel's pony
carriage, and thence had himself carried across the lake in a hired
boat to a place called Sandy's Quay. That, he was assured, was the
spot on the other side from whence the nearest road would be found
to Glenbogie. But nobody on the Callerfoot side could tell him what