garette,
and looking down on the Mediterranean in a very thoughtful mood.
Tinker was by his side, also looking down on the Mediterranean, also
silent, out of respect to his father's mood.

Suddenly Sir Tancred turned towards him, and said abruptly, "What did
you say you paid your governess?"

"Thirty pounds a year," said Tinker.

"She dresses well," said Sir Tancred.

Tinker turned his head and eyed his father with a trifle of distrust.
"She does dress well," he said gravely, "and I can't quite make it out.
Sometimes I think that her people must have lost their money, and she
bought her gowns before that happened. Sometimes I really think she's
only being a governess for fun."

"For fun?" said Sir Tancred. "But I thought her references were all
right. Yes; you told me she carried them about with her."

"Well, she has the nicest kind of face," said Tinker; and his own was
out of the common guileless.

"Oh! her face was her reference, was it?" said Sir Tancred quickly.

"You can forge references, but you can't forge a face," said Tinker
with the air of a philosopher.

Sir Tancred laughed gently. "My good Tinker," he said, "I look forward
to the day when you enter the diplomatic service. The diplomacy of
your country will be newer than ever. But don't be too sure that a
woman can't forge her face."

"There'd be a precious lot of forgery, if they could forge faces like
Dorothy's," said Tinker with conviction.

"You seem a perfect well of truth to-day," said Sir Tancred.

They were silent a while, gazing idly over the sea; then Tinker said,
"I'm beginning to think that Dorothy is rather mysterious, don't you
know. She gets very few letters, but lots of cablegrams, from America.
She has lots of money, too, and she spends it. Sometimes I have to
talk to her seriously about being extravagant."

"You do? What does she say?"

"Oh, she laughs. That's what makes me think she's only a governess for
fun. I never knew a girl so ready to laugh--though she did cry that
morning." He spoke musingly, half to himself.

"What morning was that?" said Sir Tancred quickly.

"It was a few mornings ago," said Tinker vaguely; and he added hastily,
"I think I'll go after her and Elsie; they've gone down the Corniche
towards Mentone."

"Was it the morning I had an affair with M. le Comte de Puy-de-Dome?"

"Ye-e-s," said Tinker with some reluctance, and he prepared for
trouble. Hitherto his father had said nothing