erity, seeing that the youth was on the verge of
making a ribald remark, which of necessity had to be checked betimes,
"come into my room with me and help me to clean the traces of my
difficult task from off my person. Come!"

And with ominous significance, he approached the young scoffer, his hand
on an exact level with the latter's ear, his right foot raised to
indicate a possible means of enforcing obedience to his commands.

On the whole, Master Courage thought it wise to repress both his
hilarity and his pertinent remarks, and to follow the pompous, if
begrimed, butler to the latter's room upstairs.

CHAPTER XXVI

THE OUTCAST

It took Mistress Charity some little time to recover her breath.

She had thrown herself into a chair, with her pinner over her face, in
an uncontrollable fit of laughter.

When this outburst of hilarity had subsided, she sat up, and looked
round her with eyes still streaming with merry tears.

But the laughter suddenly died on her lips and the merriment out of her
eyes. A dull, tired voice had just said feebly:

"Is Sir Marmaduke de Chavasse within?"

Charity jumped up from the chair and stared stupidly at the speaker.

"The Lord love you, Master Richard Lambert," she murmured. "I thought
you were your ghost!"

"Forgive me, mistress, if I have frightened you," he said. "It is mine
own self, I give you assurance of that, and I, fain would have speech
with Sir Marmaduke."

Mistress Charity was visibly embarrassed. She began mechanically to rub
the black stain on her cheek.

"Sir Marmaduke is without just at present, Master Lambert," she
stammered shyly, "... and ..."

"Yes? ... and? ..." he asked, "what is it, wench? ... speak out? ..."

"Sir Marmaduke gave orders, Master Lambert," she began with obvious
reluctance, "that ..."

She paused, and he concluded the sentence for her:

"That I was not to be allowed inside his house.... Was that it?"

"Alas! yes, good master."

"Never mind, girl," he rejoined as he deliberately crossed the hall and
sat down in the chair which she had just vacated. "You have done your
duty: but you could not help admitting me, could you? since I walked in
of mine own accord ... and now that I am here I will remain until I have
seen Sir Marmaduke...."

"Well! of a truth, good master," she said with a smile, for 'twas but
natural that her feminine sympathies should be on the side of a young
and good-looking man, somewhat in her own sphe