lower of a moribund
civilization, the last blossom of an ancient _regime_; but there is a
certain force which flourishes in anarchy, a life which feeds upon the
decay of other lives, and grows but the more beautiful for it. Geoffrey
looked upon her with a half-repelled, unwilling admiration, little
knowing how near he had been to her the night before. Then Maggie
Windsor came out, and he tried to look at her instead.

"Remarkably fine horses, those, Mr. Windsor," remarked the Duke, with a
gravely approving nod of his polished head. "Remarkably fine horses," he
repeated, as if one could not have too much of a good thing from a duke;
and this time he threw in a wave of his patrician hand, gratis. Jawkins
looked at him with admiration, and again felt that he was a prime
investment. The strawberry-colored dome of his bald head was alone worth
the money, not to mention the strawberry leaves.

"And does not your Grace admire the break?" asked Mr. Jawkins, with a
preliminary bow and smirk. "It is a new pattern; and the panels picked
out in cream color are thought to give a monstrous fine tone to the
body. And as for the horses--they're from ex-President Rourke's state
stables."

The Duke looked as if he deprecated the introduction of any such recent
personage into the company, even by the mention of his name; and at that
moment the Duchess arrived with Sir John Dacre. Sir John did not look
much like the member of a coaching party; a close observer might have
noted a slight mutual glance of intelligence passing between his eyes
and Geoffrey's. Mrs. Oswald Carey was that close observer.

"A four-in-hand is all very well for those that like it," observed Mr.
Windsor to the Duke, "but give me a box buggy and a span of long-tailed
horses. Are you off to-day, Jawkins?"

"Yes; the Prince has sent telegrams at twenty-minute intervals all
through the morning, and in the latest one he began to swear. The Prince
is a natural linguist and can swear in fifteen different languages. I
must be off to Brighton at once. I will return late at night. I have
left one of my young men, who will take good care of you, you know.
Good-by, Mr. Windsor--your Grace, I am your most obedient--" Jawkins
bowed low and jumped into his little dog-cart. By this time the break
had got fairly loaded; the horses were given their heads; the horn
sounded; and in the wake of the great equipment provided for Mr.
Jawkins's clients, Jawkins himself rattled contented