lie and tell the truth with the same eye. When he is as old as
I am he'll be perfect.'

'He knows nothing about her coming to town?'

'He did not when I first asked him. I am not sure, but I fancy that I
was too quick after her. She started last Saturday morning. I followed
on the Sunday, and made him out at his club. I think that he knew
nothing then of her being in town. He is very clever if he did. Since
that he has avoided me. I caught him once but only for half a minute,
and then he swore that he had not seen her.'

'You still believed him?'

'No;--he did it very well, but I knew that he was prepared for me. I
cannot say how it may have been. To make matters worse old Ruggles has
now quarrelled with Crumb, and is no longer anxious to get back his
granddaughter. He was frightened at first; but that has gone off, and
he is now reconciled to the loss of the girl and the saving of his
money.'

After that Paul told all his own story,--the double story, both in
regard to Melmotte and to Mrs Hurtle. As regarded the Railway, Roger
could only tell him to follow explicitly the advice of his Liverpool
friend. 'I never believed in the thing, you know.'

'Nor did I. But what could I do?'

'I'm not going to blame you. Indeed, knowing you as I do, feeling sure
that you intend to be honest, I would not for a moment insist on my
own opinion, if it did not seem that Mr Ramsbottom thinks as I do. In
such a matter, when a man does not see his own way clearly, it behoves
him to be able to show that he has followed the advice of some man
whom the world esteems and recognizes. You have to bind your character
to another man's character; and that other man's character, if it be
good, will carry you through. From what I hear Mr Ramsbottom's
character is sufficiently good;--but then you must do exactly what he
tells you.'

But the Railway business, though it comprised all that Montague had in
the world, was not the heaviest of his troubles. What was he to do
about Mrs Hurtle? He had now, for the first time, to tell his friend
that Mrs Hurtle had come to London and that he had been with her three
or four times. There was this great difficulty in the matter, too,--that
it was very hard to speak of his engagement with Mrs Hurtle without in
some sort alluding to his love for Henrietta Carbury. Roger knew of
both loves;--had been very urgent with his friend to abandon the widow,
and at any rate equally urgent with him to give up the ot