(On one occasion Hugh had narrated for her benefit the history of an
ancestor, one Sieur Hugues de Vallincourt, whose effigy in stone adorned
the church, and she had ever afterwards persisted in referring to her
father as "Sieur Hugh"--considerably to his annoyance, since he regarded
it as both disrespectful and unseemly.)

From this time onwards Magda seemed to take a diabolical delight
in shocking her father--experimenting on him, as it were. In some
mysterious way she had become conscious of her power to allure. Young
as she was, the instinct of conquest was awakened within her, and she
proceeded to "experiment" on certain of her father's friends--to their
huge delight and Hugh's intense disgust. Once, in an outburst of fury,
he epitomised her ruthlessly.

"The child has the soul of a courtesan!"

If this were so, Hugh had no knowledge of how to cope with it. His
fulminations on the subject of dancing affected her not at all, and a
few days after he had rebuked her with all the energy at his command he
discovered her dancing on a table--this time for the delectation of an
enraptured butler and staff in the servants' hall.

Without more ado Hugh lifted her down and carried her to his study,
where he administered a sound smacking. The result astonished him
considerably.

"Do you think you can stop me from dancing by beating me?"

Magda arraigned him with passionate scorn.