But he knew of himself that he would not
know how to begin to be tender and forgiving. He knew that he would
not know how not to be stern and hard.

But he must find out the history of it all. No doubt the man had been
his son's friend, and had joined his party in Italy at his son's
instance. But yet he had come to entertain an idea that Mrs. Finn had
been the great promoter of the sin, and he thought that Tregear had
told him that that lady had been concerned with the matter from the
beginning. In all this there was a craving in his heart to lessen the
amount of culpable responsibility which might seem to attach itself
to the wife he had lost.

He reached Matching about eight, and ordered his dinner to be brought
to him in his own study. When Lady Mary came to welcome him, he
kissed her forehead and bade her come to him after his dinner. "Shall
I not sit with you, papa, whilst you are eating it?" she asked; but
he merely told her that he would not trouble her to do that. Even
in saying this he was so unusually tender to her that she assured
herself that her lover had not as yet told his tale.

The Duke's meals were not generally feasts for a Lucullus. No man
living, perhaps, cared less what he ate, or knew less what he drank.
In such matters he took what was provided for him, making his dinner
off the first bit of meat that was brought, and simply ignoring
anything offered to him afterwards. And he would drink what wine
the servant gave him, mixing it, whatever it might be, with seltzer
water. He had never been much given to the pleasures of the table;
but this habit of simplicity had grown on him of late, till the
Duchess used to tell him that his wants were so few that it was a
pity he was not a hermit, vowed to poverty.

Very shortly a message was brought to Lady Mary, saying that her
father wished to see her. She went at once, and found him seated on
a sofa, which stood close along the bookshelves on one side of the
room. The table had already been cleared, and he was alone. He not
only was alone, but had not even a pamphlet or newspaper in his hand.

Then she knew that Tregear must have told the story. As this occurred
to her, her legs almost gave way under her. "Come and sit down,
Mary," he said, pointing to the seat on the sofa beside himself.

She sat down and took one of his hands within her own. Then, as he
did not begin at once, she asked a question. "Will Silverbridge stand
for the county, papa?"