don season commenced,
progressed, and was consumed; and still Alice heard nothing more of
her friend and cousin Lady Glencora.

But this had troubled her not at all. A chance circumstance, the
story of which she had told to no one, had given her a short intimacy
with this fair child of the gold mines, but she had felt that they
two could not live together in habits of much intimacy. She had, when
thinking of the young bride, only thought of that wild love episode
in the girl's life. It had been strange to her that she should in
one week have listened to the most passionate protestations from her
friend of love for one man, and then have been told in the next that
another man was to be her friend's husband! But she reflected that
her own career was much the same,--only with the interval of some
longer time.

But her own career was not the same. Glencora had married Mr
Palliser,--had married him without pausing to doubt;--but Alice had
gone on doubting till at last she had resolved that she would not
marry Mr Grey. She thought of this much in those days at Cheltenham,
and wondered often whether Glencora lived with her husband in the
full happiness of conjugal love.

One morning, about three days after Mr Grey's visit, there came to
her two letters, as to neither of which did she know the writer by
the handwriting. Lady Macleod had told her,--with some hesitation,
indeed, for Lady Macleod was afraid of her,--but had told her,
nevertheless, more than once, that those noble relatives had heard of
the treatment to which Mr Grey was being subjected, and had expressed
their great sorrow,--if not dismay or almost anger. Lady Macleod,
indeed, had gone as far as she dared, and might have gone further
without any sacrifice of truth. Lady Midlothian had said that it
would be disgraceful to the family, and Lady Glencora's aunt, the
Marchioness of Auld Reekie, had demanded to be told what it was the
girl wanted.

When the letters came Lady Macleod was not present, and I am disposed
to think that one of them had been written by concerted arrangement
with her. But if so she had not dared to watch the immediate effect
of her own projectile. This one was from Lady Midlothian. Of the
other Lady Macleod certainly knew nothing, though it also had sprung
out of the discussions which had taken place as to Alice's sins in
the Auld Reekie-Midlothian set. This other letter was from Lady
Glencora. Alice opened the two, one without reading th