shy at him,"
mused the Major, now on his mettle. Francois stood there expectant of a
tip, when he announced the regrets of Mademoiselle Delande, that class
duties would detain her for a few moments.

"Would Monsieur kindly pardon, etc.?"

"Am I right in inferring that the ladies, are the daughters of the
famous Professor Delande?" the Major hazarded, with a wild guess. Before
the votary of Minerva finally descended, Francois had artfully "yielded
up" much valuable information to the gravely interested visitor. The
attendant was the richer by a five-franc piece when he retired to
vigorously fall upon the Major's hat and brush it in an anticipatory
manner.

It was but a half an hour later when Alan Hawke had concluded his deftly
worded compliments upon the justly famed Institute, and had subjugated
the still susceptible spinster by his adroitly veiled flatteries. The
easy aplomb with which he introduced the forgotten commission of Captain
Anstruther was aided by the presentation of that gentleman's visiting
card, and the charms of an interesting word sketch of Delhi and its
surroundings.

The sound of distant girlish voices punctuated the refined murmur of the
ensuing conference, which was an exposition of Mademoiselle Delande's
grand manner! Hawke adroitly soothed the natural uneasiness of the
cunning Swiss spinster as to her sister's comfort, safety, and the
surety of Hugh Johnstone's fabulously liberal money inducement to retain
Miss Justine in his service for a year. The flattered woman fell
easily into Alan Hawke's net, and she freely dilated upon the singular
eccentricities of the Indian magnate as to his daughter's education.

There was a breaking light now illumining the strange childhood of a
girl, nurtured by proxy, and kept in ignorance of her brilliant future
and vast monetary inheritance.

"In fact, I have never seen the honored Mr. Hugh Fraser," concluded Miss
Euphrosyne. "Nadine was brought to us a child of three by the wife of
Professor Fraser, since deceased! And, by special arrangement, she was
taken by us, and her whole girlhood has been passed in our charge. We
have never seen her uncle, Professor Fraser, whose duties at Edinburgh
University chained him down. It was her own father's written and
positive direction that no one, whomsoever, should be admitted to
converse with his child. And so Justine and myself have formed her
entirely!"

Hawke's keen eyes glowed for a moment, in a secret satis