er," said the duke haughtily.

"We never know what we may come to," said Pollyooly with a happy
remembrance of the pious wisdom of her Aunt Hannah. "But Millie isn't
going into the workhouse anyhow. I'm not going to let her. But she
ought to go to a home and be trained to marry an empire-builder. She's
that kind of orphan: Mr. Ruf--a gentleman says that she is. And I came
to ask you if you'd give her a nomination so that she could go into the
Bellingham Home. They'll do anything you tell them there; and if you
said so, they'd take her in at once. And she'd be ever so much obliged
to you. She'd never forget it--never. And so should I."

She was leaning forward with clasped hands and shining, imploring eyes.
The duke was not insensible to the charm of her beauty, or to the
appeal of her pleading voice. He was even more sensible to the tribute
she had paid to his power in the matter of the Bellingham Home. But he
was in a captious mood; and he did not wish to oblige her. His mind
was chiefly full of the fact that he had made himself look foolish by
kidnapping her and had had to pay her six pounds compensation. He was
still sore about the foolishness and also about the money, for his was
a thrifty soul.

But Pollyooly's angel face made a direct refusal difficult. He coughed
and said:

"I--er--don't--er--do things in this--er--irregular way.
My--er--nominations are--er--only given after I have been approached in
the proper way and received testimonials and--er--sifted them out so as
to nominate the most deserving orphan among the many applicants for
admission."

"There couldn't be a more deserving orphan than Millie," said Pollyooly
quickly.

"That remains to be proved. There are often fifty or sixty applicants.
And besides, this isn't the time of year when vacancies in the home are
filled up," said the duke, hardening himself in his resistance, now
that he could throw the odium of it on to the machinery of the home.

Pollyooly's face had fallen, for her instinct told her that he did not
intend to grant her petition, and was only making excuses. She said
slowly:

"But that wouldn't matter, because if you told them to take in Millie
at any time of the year they'd do it."

"But the applications have to be written, setting forth the applicant's
claims in the proper way," said the duke, falling yet more firmly back
behind the safe barrier of red tape. "The matter has to receive
careful consideration.