income. Then, you have Herr Diddlej, the
great Norwegian pianist, who will shatter your piano in half an hour;
and, finally, Sydney, the wit, who, by the way, has disappointed me
greatly, as he has not made a repartee in a twelvemonth, nor has he set
the table in a roar. I reasoned with him the other day on the subject,
and gave him fair warning that this visit should be his last chance.
Still, I pity the man; he is a great _bon vivant_, and if he should lose
his reputation as a wit I fear that he would have to go to a workhouse
or on the London _Punch_. I have finished the list. How does it please
you?"

"I never say that I have made money until the shares are sold and paid
for," answered Mr. Windsor. "Your list sounds well, but I think I like
the old-fashioned way of asking friends to stay with me better. Still,
your plan is novel."

Mr. Jawkins seemed hurt, as an author would who had looked up from
reading the finest passage in his epic only to perceive that his auditor
was asleep and not spellbound. Jawkins believed in the "_idee_" Jawkins
as Napoleon did in his destiny.

"By your leave, Mr. Windsor, I shall go to my own room to arrange my
toilet, and then I must see about the disposition of the furniture,
bibelots and pictures, and attend to the preparations for the reception
of the guests. You need not meet them until just before dinner, when I
shall be on hand to present them to you. I cannot be here after
to-night. I must start to-morrow morning for Hampshire, where Prince
Petroloff demands my services. You see, I am a hard-worked man, Mr.
Windsor."

"So you are for an Englishman, Mr. Jawkins. Then I suppose that it is
necessary that you should attend to all the details of your profession
personally. By the way, my daughter tells me that she has asked young
Geoffrey Ripon, who used to be on the British Legation at Paris, where
we were two summers ago. You must arrange for him at the dinner-table."

"Ah, the Earl of Brompton! He is not a client of mine, but I have my
eye on him. His earthly possessions consist of about five acres of land,
a tumble-down hut near by, and a double-barrelled shotgun, and he lost
his secretaryship when the new administration made its clean sweep of
the offices. They said he was going to marry a rich girl once, I
believe."

"It seems that he did not," said Mr. Windsor, rising from his seat.

Mr. Jawkins bowed and bustled from the room, and Mr. Windsor soon heard
his sharp voi