of Lords as a fetish--whereas, it appears, she
doesn't."

"It's the queerer because, when it comes to the King, she worships
the 'accident of birth,' as you might call it. To her King Edward is
nothing less than the Lord's Anointed."

"Quite so. . . . But please, my dear fellow, don't clap into _my_
mouth that silliest of phrases. 'Accident of birth!' I once heard
parturition pleaded as an accident--by a servant girl in trouble.
Funny sort of accident, hey? Does ever anyone--did she, your own
daughter, for example--come into this world fortuitously?"

Brother Copas, taking snuff, did not perceive the twitch of his
friend's face. His question seemed to pluck Brother Bonaday up
short, as though with the jerk of an actual rope.

"Maybe," he harked back vaguely, "it's just caprice--the
inconsequence of a child's mind--the mystery of it, some would say."

"Fiddlestick-end! There's as much mystery in Corona as in the
light of day about us at this moment; just so much and no more.
If anything, she's deadly logical; when her mind puzzles us it's
never by hocus-pocus, but simply by swiftness in operation. . . .
I've learnt that much of the one female child it has ever been my lot
to observe; and the Lord may allow me to enjoy the success towards
the close of a life largely spent in misunderstanding boys.
Stay a moment--" Brother Copas stood with corrugated brow.
"I have it! I remember now that she asked me, two days ago, if I
didn't think it disgusting that so many of our English Peers went and
married American heiresses merely for their money. Probably she
supposes that on these means our ancient nobility mainly finances
itself. She amused me, too, by her obvious reluctance to blame the
men. 'Of course,' she said, 'the real fault is the women's, or would
be if they knew what's decent. But you can't expect anything of
_them_; they've had no nurture.' That was her word. So being a just
child, she has to wonder how Englishmen 'with nurture' can so demean
themselves to get money. In short, my friend, your daughter--for
love of us both maybe--is taking our picturesqueness too honestly.
She inclines to find a merit of its own in poverty. It is high time
we sent her to school."

It was high time, as Brother Bonaday knew; if only because every
child in England nowadays is legally obliged to be educated, and the
local attendance officer (easily excused though he might be for some
delay in detecting the presence