doubt had other
young and beautiful women in his life.

He may or may not have heard of the metamorphosis. At all events they
had been political allies. He would call on her as a matter of course.
And possibly out of more than politeness: he may have brought her an
important message. Or he might find it expedient to confer with her on
his present mission. That he had come on an important mission did not
admit of a doubt; but at least he had not gone to her at once. His
interest in her, so far, was still impersonal.

Clavering had too much of the arrogance of youth and he was too sure of
Mary Zattiany's love for himself, to be apprehensive of the charms of a
man of sixty, but he was invaded by a nameless and almost sickening
fear. He had very swift and often very sure intuitions, and he was
shaken by a premonition that in some manner, which, in his ignorance of
the facts he was unable to define, this man's presence in America boded
no good to himself.

But Clavering was also a man of swift decisions and resource, and he
knew this was no time to lose his head, nor even to play a waiting
game. And he must tread warily. Impulsive as he was by nature he
could be as wary as a Red Indian when wariness would serve his purpose.
He called up Mr. Dinwiddie on the telephone and asked if he might see
him at once. It was only half past nine and Mr. Dinwiddie was just
finishing his breakfast in bed, but he told his favorite cordially to
"come along."

XLIV

"What is it?" asked Mr. Dinwiddie, as Clavering entered his bedroom
fifteen minutes later. "This is an early call. Thought you didn't get
up till noon."

"Went to bed early last night for a change. I've come to ask a favor.
I'll smoke, if you don't mind."

He took a chair beside the bed, where Mr. Dinwiddie, in skull cap and
decorous pyjamas, leaned against high pillows, happily digesting his
breakfast, with the newspapers beside him. Clavering smoked for a few
moments in silence, while his host watched him keenly. He had never
seen his young friend in quite this mood. There was a curious deadly
stillness about him.

"What is it, Lee?" he asked when curiosity finally got the better of
him. "Nothing wrong between you and Mary, I hope? Of course you know
it's all over town that you're engaged to her. Don't mind my saying
this, do you? And you know you can trust me. Nothing like an old
gossip for keeping a confidence sacred."

"Well, I am. But s