childless.

Montague was a member of two or three Bohemian clubs in London, to
which, as time went on, he became increasingly attached. At these,
he passed as a good fellow, chiefly from a propensity to stand
drinks to any and everyone upon any pretence; he was also renowned
amongst his boon companions for his rendering of "The Village
Blacksmith" in dumb show, a performance greeted by his thirsty
audience with thunders of applause.

Harold, his first born, will be considered later.

Lowther, his second son, can be dismissed in a few words. He was a
good-looking specimen of the British bounder. His ideas of life were
obtained from the "Winning Post," and the morality (or want of it)
suggested by musical comedy productions at the Gaiety Theatre. He
thought coarsely of women. While spending money freely in the
society of ladies he met at the Empire promenade, or in the Cafe d'
l'Europe, he practised mean economics in private.

Victoria, Montague's daughter, was a bit of a puzzle to friends and
relations alike, all of whom commenced by liking her, a sentiment
which, sooner or later, gave place to a feeling of dissatisfaction.
She was a disappointment to her father, although he would never
admit it to himself; indeed, if he had tried to explain this
displeasure, he would have been hard put to it to give a
straightforward cause for a distressing effect. On first
acquaintance, it would seem as if she were as desirable a daughter
as heart of father could want. She was tall, good-looking, well
educated; she had abundance of tact, accomplishments, and