. "A friend of Mrs. Kilroy's, I
believe," the gentleman answered, and moved off as if he resented the
question.

But Pointed Beard was persistent. He asked two or three other people,
strangers, who did not know either, and then he made his way to Mrs.
Kilroy, but she was so surrounded he could not get near her. At last
he bethought him of the servants who were handing tea about, and
learnt Beth's name from one of them.

When Beth next noticed him, he was making his way towards her with a
cup of tea in one hand and a plate of cakes in the other.

"I have ventured to bring you some tea," he said, "but I do not know
if it is as you like it. I can easily get you some more, however, if
it is not."

"Thank you; I do not want any," Beth answered somewhat coldly.

"I'll put it here, then, on this console," he rejoined. "If I move
away I shall not be able to get near you again in this crowd. I wonder
why Mrs. Kilroy has so many people. Now, _I_ like just a few, eight or
ten for a dinner, you know, and twenty or so on these sort of
occasions. And they must all be interesting people, worth talking to.
I am exceedingly fastidious about the kind of people I know. Even as a
boy I was fastidious."

As he uttered that last sentence, Beth was again aware of something
familiar in his appearance, and she felt sure she had heard him make
that same remark more than once before--but when? but where?

"That is Lord Fitzkillingham," he continued, "that tall man who has
just come in--see, there!--shaking hands with Mrs. Kilroy. He looks
like a duke, don't you know. I admire people of distinguished
appearance much more than good-looking people--people who are merely
good-looking, I mean, of course. I saw _you_ directly I came into the
room, and was determined to find out who you were; and I asked I can't
tell you how many people, whether I knew them or not. What do you
think of that for perseverance?"

"You certainly seem to be persistent," Beth answered with a smile.

"Oh, I'm nothing if not persistent," he rejoined complacently. "I'll
undertake to find out anything I want to know. Do you see that lady
there in black? I wanted to know her age, so I went to Somerset House
and looked it up."

"What did you do that for?" Beth asked.

"I wanted to know."

"But did she want you to know?"

"Well, naturally not, or she would have told me. But it is no use
trying to conceal things from me. I am not to be deceived."

"You must be quit