rd was not
without benevolence, that he clung faithfully to his aunt in spite of
his connections in the great world, and that he was planning to assist
in the education of his cousins. If she had not somewhat exaggerated
these virtues of fidelity and generosity she would not have been a
woman, for it is one of the crowning good fortunes of life that a woman
can contrive to make so much of a little virtue in a man.

Having left Phillida, Millard and Gouverneur walked together up Second
Avenue, past the closed gateways of Stuyvesant Park. Millard was doing
the talking, at a great rate. Philip was silent in regard to everything,
or if he spoke he said only so much as a decent courtesy demanded. This
soon became tiresome to Millard, who was relieving the internal pressure
of his thoughts by mere bubble talk about things of no interest to
himself, while it seemed impossible to excite his companion's interest
in anything.

"You and I have changed places to-night, Phil," he said at length; "you
make me do all the talking. Come now, it's your turn."

"I don't feel in the humor," said Philip. "Are you going to the club?"

"No; I shall go home and write some letters, maybe, now I think of it.
So good-night."

Philip's "Good-night" was more curt than courteous, and he made his way
to the club, where, according to his habit, he crouched his small form
into one of the great chairs, drawing his head down between his
shoulders, which were thrust upward by the resting of his elbows on the
chair-arms. Here he sat long, taking no part in any conversation, but
watching the smoke from his cigar.

The next morning he came late to breakfast, and his mother lingered
after the rest had left the table, to see that his coffee and chops were
right and to mitigate his apparent depression.

"Your little match-making scheme is likely to succeed beautifully," he
said to her when the servant had gone.

"What do you mean? I'm sure I had no views of that kind in asking
Charley Millard and Phillida. I only wished to encourage Phillida to go
more into society."

"Views or no views, what it'll come to will be a match," Philip
retorted.

"Well, there'll be no harm done, I suppose."

"Not if you think Charley the best man for her."

There was something of dejection in the tone of this last remark, and a
note of reproach to her, that rendered Mrs. Gouverneur uneasy. When
Philip had left the table she revolved it in her mind. Was Philip
himself