erhaps you would permit me to drop in and pay my respects to Mrs.
Giles--I have wished to do so before."

CHAPTER 7

Mr. Giles was a leading partner in the firm of Roundells, Giles, and
Roundell, among the most eminent solicitors of Lincoln's Inn. He, in
those days of prolonged maturity, might be described as still a young
man. He had inherited from his father not only a large share in a
first-rate business, but no inconsiderable fortune; and though he had,
in her circles, a celebrated wife, he had no children. He was opulent
and prosperous, with no cares and anxieties of his own, and loved
his profession, for which he was peculiarly qualified, being a man
of uncommon sagacity, very difficult to deceive, and yet one who
sympathized with his clients, who were all personally attached to him,
and many of whom were among the distinguished personages of the realm.

During an important professional visit to Ireland, Mr. Giles had made
the acquaintance of Miss Apollonia Smylie, the niece of an Irish peer;
and, though the lady was much admired and courted, had succeeded, after
a time, in inducing her to become the partner of his life.

Mrs. Giles, or, as she described herself, Mrs. Putney Giles, taking
advantage of a second and territorial Christian name of her husband,
was a showy woman; decidedly handsome, unquestionably accomplished, and
gifted with energy and enthusiasm which far exceeded even her physical
advantages. Her principal mission was to destroy the papacy and to
secure Italian unity. Her lesser impulses were to become acquainted with
the aristocracy, and to be herself surrounded by celebrities. Having a
fine house in Tyburnia, almost as showy as herself, and a husband who
was never so happy as when gratifying her wishes, she did not find it
difficult in a considerable degree to pursue and even accomplish her
objects. The Putney Giles gave a great many dinners, and Mrs. Putney
received her world frequently, if not periodically. As they entertained
with profusion, her well-lighted saloons were considerably attended.
These assemblies were never dull; the materials not being ordinary,
often startling, sometimes even brilliant, occasionally rather
heterogeneous. For, though being a violent Protestant, and of extreme
conservative opinions, her antipapal antipathies and her Italian
predilections frequently involved her with acquaintances not so
distinguished as she deemed herself for devotion to the cause of ord