rhaps
purposely, when the servants had left the room he opened the battle
with a sneer.

"I hope you didn't make a fool of yourself this evening," he said.

"As how?" queried Robert, wondrously subdued to all appearance, though
aching to give the other what he called "a bit of his mind."

"I understand you made after Sylvia and the artist, meaning to
chastise somebody."

"You were wrong," said Robert slowly. "You nearly always are. I make
mistakes myself, but I own up handsomely. You don't. That's where we
differ, see?"

"I see differences," and Hilton helped himself to a glass of claret.

"Trenholme, the artist Johnny, is a clever chap--slightly cracked, as
they all are, but dashed clever. By gad, you ought to see the picture
he's painted of Sylvia. Anyhow, you _will_ see it. I've bought it."

"Really?"

"I said I'd buy it--same thing. He'll jump at the offer. It'll hang in
my dressing-room. I don't suppose Sylvia will kick about a trifle
like that when we're married."

Hilton was holding the glass of wine to his lips. His hand shook, and
he spilled a little, but he drank the remainder.

"When did you decide to marry Sylvia?" he inquired, after a pause
which might have been needed to gain control of his voice.

"It's been decided for a long time," said Robert doggedly, himself
showing some signs of enforced restraint. "It was the pater's wish, as
you know. I'm sorry now I didn't fix matters before he died; but
'better late than never.' I asked Sylvia today, and we've arranged to
get married quite soon."

"Are you by any chance telling the truth?"

"What the blazes do you mean?" and Robert's fist pounded the table
heavily.

"Exactly what I say. You say that you and Sylvia have arranged to get
married quite soon. Those were your words. Is that true?"

"Confound you, of course it is."

"Sylvia has actually agreed to that?"

"I asked her. What more do you want?"

"I am merely inquiring civilly what she said."

"Dash it, you know what girls are like. You ought to. Isn't Eileen
Garth a bit coy at times?"

"One might remark that Mrs. Lisle also was coy."

"Look here----" began the other furiously, but the other checked him.

"Let us stop bickering like a couple of counter jumpers," he said, and
a shrewder man than Robert might have been warned by the slow,
incisive utterance. "You make an astonishing announcement on an
occasion when it might least be expected, yet resent any doubt being
thrown on