and handsome, and perfectly groomed. No mother could help being proud of
him.

"Tristram, dear boy, now tell me all about it," she said.

"There is hardly anything to tell you, Mother, except that I am going to
be married about the 25th of October--and--you will be awfully nice to
her--to Zara--won't you?" He had taken the precaution to send round a
note, early in the morning, to Francis Markrute, asking for his lady's
full name, as he wished to tell his family; so the "Zara" came out quite
naturally! "She is rather a peculiar person, and--er--has very stiff
manners. You may not like her at first."

"No, dear?" said Lady Tancred hesitatingly, "Stiff manners you say? That
at least is on the right side. I always deplore the modern
free-and-easy-ness."

"Oh, there is nothing free-and-easy about her!" said Tristram, helping
himself to a cutlet, while he smiled almost grimly. His sense of humor
was highly aroused oven the whole thing; only that overmastering
something which drew him was even stronger than this.

Then he felt that there was no use in allowing his mother to drag
information from him; he had better tell her what he meant her to know.

"You see, Mother, the whole thing has been arranged rather suddenly. I
only settled upon it last night myself, and so told you at once. She
will be awfully rich, which is rather a pity in a sense--though I
suppose we shall live at Wrayth again, and all that--- but I need not
tell you I am not marrying her for such a reason."