away from the door.

CHAPTER XVIII.

DOWN IN SCOTLAND.

When the time came, all the Tringles, together with the Honourable
Mrs. Traffick, started for Glenbogie. Aunt Emmeline had told Sir
Thomas all Lucy's sins, but Sir Thomas had not made so much of them
as his wife had expected. "It wouldn't be a bad thing to have a
husband for Lucy," said Sir Thomas.

"But the man hasn't got a sixpence."

"He has a profession."

"I don't know that he makes anything. And then think of his father!
He is--illegitimate!" Sir Thomas seemed rather to sneer at this. "And
if you knew the way the old man lives in Rome! He plays cards all
Sunday!" Again Sir Thomas sneered. Sir Thomas was fairly submissive
to the conventionalities himself, but did not think that they ought
to stand in the way of a provision for a young lady who had no
provision of her own. "You wouldn't wish to have him at Queen's
Gate?" asked Lady Tringle.

"Certainly not, if he makes nothing by his profession. A good deal,
I think, depends upon that." Then nothing further was said, but Lucy
was not told her uncle's opinion on the matter, as had been promised.
When she went down to Glenbogie she only knew that Mr. Hamel was
considered to be by far too black a sheep to be admitted into her
aunt's presence, and that she must regard herself as separated from
the man as far as any separation could be effected by her present
protectors. But if he would be true to her, as to a girl whom he had
a short time since so keenly rejoiced in "finding again," she was
quite sure that she could be true to him.

On the day fixed, the 20th of August, Mr. Houston arrived at
Glenbogie, with boots and stockings and ammunition, such as Tom
had recommended when interrogated on those matters by his sister,
Gertrude. "I travelled down with a man I think you know," he said to
Lucy;--"at any rate your sister does, because I saw him with her at
Rome." The man turned out to be Isadore Hamel. "I didn't like to ask
him whether he was coming here," said Frank Houston.

"No; he is not coming here," said Aunt Emmeline.

"Certainly not," said Gertrude, who was quite prepared to take up the
cudgels on her mother's behalf against Mr. Hamel.

"He said something about another man he used to know at Rome, before
you came. He was a nephew of that Marchesa Baldoni."

"She was a lady we didn't like a bit too well," said Gertrude.

"A very stuck-up sort of person, who did all she could to spoil