declared himself in
Florence's favor. You can't count upon Augustus Scarborough."

"Not just count upon him."

"Whereas there's young Anderson, who is the most gentleman-like young
man I know, all ready. It will have been such a turn of luck your coming
here and catching him up."

"I don't know that it can be called a turn of luck. Florence has a very
nice fortune of her own--"

"And she wants to give it to this penniless reprobate. It is just one of
those cases in which you must deal roundly with a girl. She has to be
frightened, and that's about the truth of it."

After this, Lady Mountjoy did succeed in getting Florence alone with
herself into her morning-room. When her mother told her that her aunt
wished to see her, she answered first that she had no special wish to
see her aunt. Her mother declared that in her aunt's house she was bound
to go when her aunt sent for her. To this Florence demurred. She was,
she thought, her aunt's guest, but by no means at her aunt's disposal.
But at last she obeyed her mother. She had resolved that she would obey
her mother in all things but one, and therefore she went one morning to
her aunt's chamber.

But as she went she was, on the first instance, caught by her uncle, and
taken by him into a little private sanctum behind his official room. "My
dear," he said, "just come in here for two minutes."

"I am on my way up to my aunt."

"I know it, my dear. Lady Mountjoy has been talking it all over with me.
Upon my word you can't do anything better than take young Anderson."

"I can't do that, Uncle Magnus."

"Why not? There's poor Mountjoy Scarborough, he has gone astray."

"There is no question of my cousin."

"And Augustus is no better."

"There is no question of Augustus either."

"As to that other chap, he isn't any good;--he isn't indeed."

"You mean Mr. Annesley?"

"Yes; Harry Annesley, as you call him. He hasn't got a shilling to bless
himself with, or wouldn't have if he was to marry you."

"But I have got something."

"Not enough for both of you, I'm afraid. That uncle of his has
disinherited him."

"His uncle can't disinherit him."

"He's quite young enough to marry and have a family, and then Annesley
will be disinherited. He has stopped his allowance, anyway, and you
mustn't think of him. He did something uncommonly unhandsome the other
day, though I don't quite know what."

"He did nothing unhandsome, Uncle Magnus."

"Of course a young lady