orrow, and looks
as if she meant it, too. Hadn't I better send to Mrs. Clover?"

Gammon reflected.

"I tell you what, send and ask her to come here to-night; say it's very
important. We'll have them face to face--by jorrocks, we will!"

"Polly mayn't be 'ome before half-past ten or eleven."

"Never mind. I tell you we'll have them face to face. If it comes to
that I'll pay for a cab for Mrs. Clover to go home in. Tell her to be
here at eight. Stop. You mustn't have the trouble; I can very well go
round myself. Yes, I'll go myself and arrange it."

"It may be a lie," remarked Mrs. Bubb.

"So it may be, but somehow I don't think so. The rummiest thing that
that never came into my head! I shouldn't be a bit surprised if Clover
ain't living in Belgrave Square, or some such place. Just the kind of
thing that happens with these mysterious johnnies. She'll have come
across him somewhere, and he's bribed her to keep it dark--see? What a
gooseberry I was never to think of it! We'll have 'em face to face!"

"Suppose Polly won't?"

"Won't? Gosh, but she _shall_! If I have to carry her downstairs, she
shall! Think we're going to let her keep a thing like this to herself?
You just wait and see. Leave it to me, that's all. Lucky there's only
friends in the house. Polly, likes a row, and, by jorrocks, she shall
have one!"

CHAPTER IX

POLLY'S DEFIANCE

Content with her four lodgers, Mrs. Bubb reserved the rooms on the
ground floor for her own use. In that at the back she slept with the
two younger children; the other two had a little bed in the front room,
which during the daytime served as a parlour. On occasions of
ceremony--when the parlour was needed in the evening--the children
slept in a bare attic next to that occupied by Moggie; and this they
looked upon as a treat, for it removed them from their mother's
observation, and gave opportunities for all sorts of adventurous pranks.

Thus were things arranged for to-night. Mrs. Bubb swept and garnished
her parlour for the becoming reception of a visitor whom she could not
but "look up to." Mrs. Clover's origin was as humble as her own, and
her education not much better, but natural gifts and worldly
circumstances had set a distance between them. Partly, perhaps, because
she was the widow of a police constable Mrs. Bubb gave all due weight
to social distinctions; she knew her "place," and was incapable of
presuming. With Polly Sparkes she did not hesitate to us