ty arms stretched to Heaven,
imploring God for her child. And now, what terms will you make with me.
In the one case, an armed peace; in the other, 'war to the knife!'"

"What would you have?" he stubbornly muttered. "You seek my ruin."

"I do not!" solemnly answered Berthe Louison. "God has blasted your life
in denying you the love of your own child. You rule her by fear. You, in
your selfish passion, once reached out your strong hand and crushed this
girl's mother, a poor, fragile flower, in her girlhood. Valerie believed
Pierre to be dead or false when she timidly crossed the threshold of
the wedded home which you made a prison for her! You only care for
this bubble Baronetcy and for your heaped-up hoards. The tribute of
the shrieking ryot! Now, here are my terms: I will go down with you to
Calcutta, and deliver over to you there the receipt for the deposit of
jewels which holds back your coveted honor. You may do with them as you
will! A visit to the Viceroy will at once clear the path. Tell any story
you will of their recovery. An underling's unfaithfulness or the loss of
the paper. You may remove them and surrender them as you will. Perhaps a
fanciful discovery of their hiding-place here, their surrender by Hindu
thieves, frightened at last; any of these conventional lies will clear
your official record of the olden stain. Long years ago I would have
treated with you, but I wanted to find the child. You hid her away from
me. I found you out by chance in your changed name and new official
residence."

"And your terms?" demanded Johnstone. He saw, with lightning cunning, a
pathway leading him out of his troubles. The vigil of the night before
had borne its fruit already.

"That I have free access to your house and home. That I shall be the
honored guest at your table. That I shall be left in no dubious social
standing here. That I may see your daughter, learn to know her, and you
may prudently arrange the story I am to tell her later. As Madame Berthe
Louison, a tourist of wealth, an art dilettante, a French woman of rank
and position, your social guaranty will keep the pack of human wolves
away from my retreat here. I have my papers to prove all this."

"When must this be? Before I receive the jewels? Before my title to the
baronetcy is perfected? What guaranty have I?" he replied.

"My honor alone! I pledge you now that I will not make myself known to
Nadine until you have received the jewels and the Crown ha