rd,
who in giving him the ugly story of his own existence, taught him the
misanthropical lesson that all men are knaves, all women fools. He
developed, as a consequence, that sardonic outlook upon the world. He
sought to take vos non vobis for his motto, affected to a spectator in
the theatre of Life, with the obvious result that he became the greatest
actor of them all.

So we find him even now, his main emotion pity for Sir Richard, who sat
silent for some moments, reviewing that thirty-year dead past, until
the tears scalded his old eyes. The baronet made a queer noise in
his throat, something between a snarl and a sob, and he flung himself
suddenly back in his chair.

Justin sat down, a becoming gravity in his countenance. "Tell me all,"
he begged his adoptive father. "Tell me how matters stand precisely--how
you propose to act."

"With all my heart," the baronet assented. "Lord Ostermore, having
turned his coat once for profit, is ready now to turn it again for the
same end. From the information that reaches me from England, it would
appear that in the rage of speculation that has been toward in London,
his lordship has suffered heavily. How heavily I am not prepared to say.
But heavily enough, I dare swear, to have caused this offer to return to
his king; for he looks, no doubt, to sell his services at a price that
will help him mend the wreckage of his fortunes. A week ago a gentleman
who goes between his majesty's court at Rome and his friends here in
Paris brought me word from his majesty that Ostermore had signified to
him his willingness to rejoin the Stuart cause.

"Together with that information, this messenger brought me letters from
his majesty to several of his friends, which I was to send to England
by a safe hand at the first opportunity. Now, amongst these
letters--delivered to me unsealed--is one to my Lord Ostermore, making
him certain advantageous proposals which he is sure to accept if his
circumstances be as crippled as I am given to understand. Atterbury and
his friends, it seems, have already tampered with my lord's loyalty to
Dutch George to some purpose, and there is little doubt but that this
letter"--and he tapped a document before him--"will do what else is to
be done.

"But, since these letters were left with me, come you with his majesty's
fresh injunctions that I am to suppress them and cross to England at
once myself, to prevail upon Atterbury and his associates to abandon the
u