gain the game was called,
and again she won. The money was dealt out to her,--on this occasion
with a full hand. There were lying there between twenty and thirty
napoleons, of which she was the mistress. Her face had flushed
before, but now it became very red. She caught hold of Alice, who was
literally trembling beside her, and tried to laugh again. But there
was that in her eye which told Alice that she was really frightened.
Some one then placed a chair for her at the table, and in her
confusion, not knowing what she was to do, she seated herself. "Come
away," said Alice, taking hold of her, and disregarding everything
but her own purpose, in the agony of the moment. "You must come
away! You shall not sit there!" "I must get rid of that money," said
Glencora, trying to whisper her words, "and then I will come away."
The croupier again asked her if the money was to remain, and she
again nodded her head. Everybody at the table was now looking at her.
The women especially were staring at her,--those horrid women with
vermilion cheeks, and loud bonnets half off their heads, and hard,
shameless eyes, and white gloves, which, when taken off in the ardour
of the game, disclosed dirty hands. They stared at her with that
fixed stare which such women have, and Alice saw it all, and
trembled.

Again she won. "Leave it," said Alice, "and come away." "I can't
leave it," said Glencora. "If I do, there'll be a fuss. I'll go
the next time." What she said was, of course, in English, and was
probably understood by no one near her; but it was easy to be seen
that she was troubled, and, of course, those around her looked at
her the more because of her trouble. Again that little question and
answer went on between her and the croupier, and on this occasion
the money was piled up on the compartment--a heap of gold which made
envious the hearts of many who stood around there. Alice had now both
her hands on the back of the chair, needing support. If the devil
should persist, and increase that stock of gold again, she must
go and seek for Mr Palliser. She knew not what else to do. She
understood nothing of the table, or of its laws; but she supposed
all those ministers of the game to be thieves, and believed that
all villainous contrivances were within their capacity. She thought
that they might go on adding to that heap so long as Lady Glencora
would sit there, presuming that they might thus get her into their
clutches. Of course, she di