d in
defence of an absent man, and need not, perhaps, have been taken up
had the speaker not at once put on his hat and stalked out of the
room, and banged the door. It was asserted that a lie may be given
by the way in which a door is banged. And yet no club punishes the
putting on of hats, or stalking off, or the banging of doors. It was
a difficult question, and occupied Frank Houston till two o'clock
in the morning, to the exclusion of Gertrude Tringle and Imogene
Docimer.

On the Sunday morning he was not up early, nor did he go to church.
The contumacious gentleman was a friend of his, whom he knew that no
arguments would induce to apologise. He believed also that gentleman
No. 3 might have been seen playing cards with gentleman No. 2,--so
that there was no valid excuse for the banging of the door. He was
much exercised by the points to be decided, so that when he got into
a cab to be taken to Mrs. Docimer's house he had hardly come to
any other conclusion than that one which had arisen to him from a
comparison between the two young ladies. Imogene was nearly perfect,
and Gertrude was as nearly the reverse as a young lady could be with
the proper number of eyes in her head and a nose between them. The
style of her letter was abominable to him. "Very ill indeed;--as you
will understand, if you ever really loved me!" There was a mawkish
clap-trap about it which thoroughly disgusted him. Everything from
Imogene was straightforward and downright whether it were love or
whether it were anger. But then to be settled with an income of
L3,000 a year would relieve him from such a load of care!

"And so Tringle pere does not see the advantage of such a
son-in-law," said Imogene, after the first greetings were over
between them. The greetings had been very simple,--just a touch of
the hand, just a civil word,--civil, but not in the least tender,
just an inclination of the head, and then two seats occupied with all
the rug between them.

"Yes, indeed!" said Frank. "The man is a fool, because he will
probably get somebody who will behave less well to his daughter, and
make a worse use of his money."

"Just so. One can only be astonished at his folly. Is there no hope
left?"

"A glimmer there is."

"Oh, indeed!"

"I got a letter last night from my lady-love, in which she tells
me that she is very ill, and that her sickness is working upon her
father's bowels."

"Frank!"

"It is the proper language;--working upon