"It is impossible. I have promised for Saturday, and must keep the
appointment," and Burton Jerrold leisurely scraped and trimmed his thumb
nail, but did not explain that the appointment he must keep was with the
members of his club, who gave a dinner on Saturday.

He knew very well that he could remain in Allington until Saturday
afternoon and then reach home in time for the dinner; but the place was
almost as distasteful to him as to his wife, and he gladly seized upon
any pretext to shorten his stay as much as possible.

"Shall I tell father that you will come with Burton to-morrow?" Hannah
asked her sister, who instantly assumed that air of invalidism which she
found so convenient when anything disagreeable was suggested for her to
do.

Drawing her shawl more closely about her, and glancing with a little
shiver at the window, she replied:

"N-no, I hardly think I shall go out to-morrow, it will be so cold, and
probably stormy; but you may expect me for a little while on Saturday,
if the day is fine."

"But _I_ shall come and stay till Monday, and I hope you have a lot of
mince pies baked up. Last Thanksgiving we were in Paris, and had pea
soup, and brains, and eels, and stewed celery for dinner," Grey said, as
he kissed his aunt and bade her good-by.