ss.

"Ah, but you know well what you have to do with it," Nina said, with
some touch of scorn. "Yes, you pretend; but you know it well. The young
man he goes from you yesterday to provoke the duel--you have been
talking to him--and yet you pretend. You say, why should they not
fight? Then it is nothing to you that one friend or the other friend may
be killed?--that is nothing to you?--and you know you can prevent it if
you choose. You do not wish to interfere--it will be amusing to read in
the papers! Oh, very amusing! And if the one is killed?"

"But you know, Miss Ross, they don't go such lengths nowadays," said
Miss Burgoyne, with great good-humor. "No, no; it's only honor and glory
they go out for; it's only the name of the thing; they don't want to
kill each other. Besides, if two men mean to fight, how can a woman
interfere? What is she supposed to know of the cause of quarrel? These
things are not supposed to be known."

"Then," said Nina, whose lips had grown still more indignant and
scornful, "this is what I say: if anything happens, it is your
conscience that will speak to you in after time. You wish them to fight,
yes, for your vanity to be pleased!--you wish it said that they fight
about you! And that is a trionf for you--something in the papers--and
you do not care what harm is done if you are talked about! That is your
friendship!--what do you care?--any one may be sacrificed to your
vanity--"

"I suppose if they were fighting about you, you wouldn't say a word
against it!" observed Miss Burgoyne, coolly. In fact the vehement
reproaches that Nina had addressed to her did not seem to have offended
her in the least; for she went on to say, in the best of tempers: "Well,
Miss Ross, I have to thank you for bringing me the news. But don't be
alarmed; these dreadful duels, even when they get into the newspapers,
seldom show much harm done. And in the meantime will you excuse
me?--Jane is grumbling in there, I know. Tell me anything you may hear
about it by and by--and meanwhile I am very much obliged to you." So
Nina found herself dismissed, neither her piteous appeal nor her
indignant protest having had apparently any effect whatever.

But Miss Burgoyne, while transforming herself into Grace Mainwaring, had
plenty of time to think over this startling position of affairs, and to
consider how she could best use it to her own advantage. She had a
nimble brain; and it may have occurred to her that here was a n