an girls to marry distinguished foreigners, this alliance
is certainly worthy of due consideration."

"Stuff!" said Mrs. Easterfield.

Olive was not annoyed, and replied very quietly: "It is not stuff. You
must know young women who have married foreigners and who did not do
anything like so well as if they had married rising diplomats."

Mrs. Blynn now knocked at the door on urgent household business.

"I shall want to see you again about all this, Olive," said Mrs.
Easterfield as they parted.

"Of course," replied the girl, "whenever you want to."

"Mrs. Blynn," said the lady of the house, "before you mention what you
have come to talk about, please tell one of the men to put a horse to a
buggy and come to the house. I want to send a message by him."

The letter which was speedily on its way to Mr. Richard Lancaster was a
very brief one. It simply asked the young gentleman to come to
Broadstone, with bad news or good news, or without any news at all. It
was absolutely necessary that the writer should see him, and in order
that there might be no delay she sent a conveyance for him. Moreover,
she added, it would give her great pleasure if Mr. Lancaster would come
prepared to spend a couple of days at her house. She felt sure good
Captain Asher would spare him for that short time. She believed that at
this moment more gentlemen were needed at Broadstone, and, although she
did not go on to say that she thought Dick was not having a fair chance
at this very important crisis, that is what she expected the young man
to understand.

Just before luncheon, at the time when Claude Locker might have been
urging his suit had he been less kind-hearted and generous, Olive found
an opportunity to say a few words to Mrs. Easterfield.

"A capital idea has come into my head," she said. "What do you think of
holding a competitive examination among these young men?"

"More stuff, and more nonsense!" ejaculated Mrs. Easterfield. "I never
knew any one to trifle with serious subjects as you are trifling with
your future."

"I am not trifling," said Olive. "Of course, I don't mean that I should
hold an examination, but that you should. You know that parents--foreign
parents, I mean--make all sorts of examinations of the qualifications
and merits of candidates for the hands of their daughters, and I should
be very grateful if you would be at least that much of a mother to me."

"No examination would be needed," said the other quick