ht in a Radical constituency and been
badly beaten; but the second time he had, by some curious juggling of
chance, been successful in an almost equally strong Radical division,
much to the delight of Mrs. Bonsor. The success had been largely due
to her idea of flooding the constituency with pretty girl-canvassers;
but she had been very careful to keep a watchful eye on Mr. Bonsor.

One of her reasons for engaging Patricia, for really Mrs. Bonsor was
responsible for the engagement, had been that she had decided that
Patricia was indifferent to men, and she decided that Mr. Bonsor might
safely be trusted with Patricia Brent for long periods of secretarial
communion.

Mr. Bonsor, although not lacking in susceptibility, was entirely devoid
of that courage which subjugates the feminine heart. Once he had
permitted his hand to rest upon Patricia's; but he never forgot the
look she gave him and, for weeks after, he felt a most awful dog, and
wondered if Patricia would tell Mrs. Bonsor.

When she married, Mrs. Bonsor saw that it would be necessary to drop
her family, that is as far as practicable. It could not be done
entirely, because her father was responsible for the allowance which
made it possible for the Bonsors to live in Eaton Square. The old man
was not lacking in shrewdness, and he had no intention of being thrown
overboard by his ambitious daughter. It occasionally happened that Mr.
Triggs would descend upon the Bonsor household and, although Mrs.
Bonsor did her best to suppress him, that is without in any way showing
she was ashamed of her parent, he managed to make Patricia's
acquaintance and, from that time, made a practice of enquiring for and
having a chat with her.

Mrs. Bonsor was grateful to providence for having removed her mother
previous to her marriage. Mrs. Triggs had been a homely soul, with a
marked inclination to be "friendly." She overflowed with good-humour,
and was a woman who would always talk in an omnibus, or join a wedding
crowd and compare notes with those about her. She addressed Mr. Triggs
as "Pa," which caused her daughter a mental anguish of which Mrs.
Triggs was entirely unaware. It was not until Miss Triggs was almost
out of her teens that her mother was persuaded to cease calling her
"Girlie."

In Mrs. Bonsor the reforming spirit was deeply ingrained; but she had
long since despaired of being able to influence her father's taste in
dress. She groaned in spirit each time