nt of a near division upon the estimates. But he
had never yet seen a poor man stake his last napoleon, and rake back
from off the table a small hatful of gold. A little exercise after an
early dinner was, he had been told, good for his wife; and he agreed
therefore that, on their second evening at Baden, they would all walk
up and see the play.

"Perhaps I shall get back my napoleon," said Glencora to Alice.

"And perhaps I shall be forgiven when somebody sees how difficult it
is to manage you," said Alice, looking at Mr Palliser.

"She isn't in earnest," said Mr Palliser, almost fearing the result
of the experiment.

"I don't know that," said Lady Glencora.

They started together, Mr Palliser with his wife, and Mr Grey with
Alice on his arm, and found all the tables at work. They at first
walked through the different rooms, whispering to each other their
comments on the people that they saw, and listening to the quick,
low, monotonous words of the croupiers as they arranged and presided
over the games. Each table was closely surrounded by its own crowd,
made up of players, embryo players, and simple lookers-on, so that
they could not see much as they walked. But this was not enough for
Lady Glencora. She was anxious to know what these men and women were
doing,--to see whether the croupiers wore horns on their heads and
were devils indeed,--to behold the faces of those who were wretched
and and of those who were triumphant,--to know how the thing was
done, and to learn something of that lesson in life. "Let us stand
here a moment," she said to her husband, arresting him at one corner
of the table which had the greatest crowd. "We shall be able to see
in a few minutes." So he stood with her there, giving way to Alice,
who went in front with his wife; and in a minute or two an aperture
was made, so that they could all see the marked cloth, and the money
lying about, and the rakes on the table, and the croupier skilfully
dealing his cards, and,--more interesting than all the rest, the
faces of those who were playing. Grey looked on, over Alice's
shoulder, very attentively,--as did Palliser also,--but both of them
kept their eyes upon the ministers of the work. Alice and Glencora
did the same at first, but as they gained courage they glanced round
upon the gamblers.

It was a long table, having, of course, four corners, and at the
corner appropriated by them they were partly opposite to the man who
dealt the cards.