him.' Dolly sat quite
silent thinking of it. 'What had I better do?' asked Sir Felix.

'By George;--I don't know.'

'What should you do?'

'Nothing at all. I shouldn't believe my own eyes. Or if I did, should
take care not to look at him.'

'You wouldn't go on playing with him?'

'Yes I should. It'd be such a bore breaking up.'

'But Dolly,--if you think of it!'

'That's all very fine, my dear fellow, but I shouldn't think of it.'

'And you won't give me your advice.'

'Well--no; I think I'd rather not. I wish you hadn't told me. Why did
you pick me out to tell me? Why didn't you tell Nidderdale?'

'He might have said, why didn't you tell Longestaffe?'

'No, he wouldn't. Nobody would suppose that anybody would pick me out
for this kind of thing. If I'd known that you were going to tell me
such a story as this I wouldn't have come with you.'

'That's nonsense, Dolly.'

'Very well. I can't bear these kind of things. I feel all in a twitter
already.'

'You mean to go on playing just the same?'

'Of course I do. If he won anything very heavy I should begin to think
about it, I suppose. Oh; this is Abchurch Lane, is it? Now for the man
of money.'

The man of money received them much more graciously than Felix had
expected. Of course nothing was said about Marie and no further
allusion was made to the painful subject of the baronet's 'property.'
Both Dolly and Sir Felix were astonished by the quick way in which the
great financier understood their views and the readiness with which he
undertook to comply with them. No disagreeable questions were asked as
to the nature of the debt between the young men. Dolly was called upon
to sign a couple of documents, and Sir Felix to sign one,--and then they
were assured that the thing was done. Mr Adolphus Longestaffe had paid
Sir Felix Carbury a thousand pounds, and Sir Felix Carbury's
commission had been accepted by Mr Melmotte for the purchase of
railway stock to that amount. Sir Felix attempted to say a word. He
endeavoured to explain that his object in this commercial transaction
was to make money immediately by reselling the shares,--and to go on
continually making money by buying at a low price and selling at a
high price. He no doubt did believe that, being a Director, if he
could once raise the means of beginning this game, he could go on with
it for an unlimited period;--buy and sell, buy and sell;--so that he
would have an almost regular income. This, as f