eness from Mr. Linton. Therefore he had never had
a chance of becoming intimate with that gentleman. Why, then, should
that gentleman desire an early interview with him?

It was certainly curious that within a few minutes of his having
referred to Mrs. Linton, in the presence of Phyllis Ayrton, in a way
that had had a very unhappy result so far as he was concerned, he
should receive a letter from Mrs. Linton's husband asking for an early
interview.

He seated himself in his study chair and began to think what the writer
of that letter might have to say to him.

He had not to ask himself if it was possible that Mr. Linton might have
a word or two to say to him, respecting the word or two which he, George
Holland, had just said about Mrs. Linton; for George knew very well
that, though during the previous week or two he had heard some persons
speaking lightly of Mrs. Linton, coupling her name with the name of
Herbert Courtland, yet he had never had occasion to couple their names
together except during the previous half hour, so that it could not
be Mr. Linton's intention to take him to task, so to speak, for his
indiscretion--his slander, Phyllis might be disposed to term it.

Upon that point he was entirely satisfied. But he was not certain that
Mr. Linton did not want to consult him on some matter having more or
less direct bearing upon the coupling together of the names of Mrs.
Linton and Mr. Courtland. People even in town are fond of consulting
clergymen upon curious personal matters--matters upon which a lawyer
or a doctor should rather be consulted. He himself had never encouraged
such confidences. What did he keep curates for? His curates had saved
him many a long hour of talk with inconsequent men and illogical women
who had come to him with their stories. What were to him the stories of
men whose wives were giving them trouble? What were to him the stories
of wives who had difficulties with their housemaids or who could not
keep their boys from reading pirate literature? His curates managed the
domestic department of his church for him. They could give any earnest
inquirer at a moment's notice the addresses of several civil-spoken
women (elderly) who went out as mother's helps by the day. They were
very useful young men and professed to like this work. He would not
do them the injustice to believe that they spoke the truth in that
particular way.

He could not fancy for what purpose Mr. Linton wished to see h