recovering his good name, and that's Christian. But the earl, he knows
a man as well as a horse. He's one to follow. Go to a fayte down at
Esslemont, you won't forget your day. See there, he's brought a lady on
the top o' the coach. That seems for to signify he don't expect it's
going to be much of a bloody business. But there's no accounting.
Anyhow, Broadfield 'll have a name in the papers for Sunday reading.
In comes t' other lord's coach. They've timed it together closes they
have.

They were pronounced to be both the right sort of noblemen for the
country. Lord Brailstone's blue coach rattled through an eastern gate to
the corner of the thirty-acre meadow, where Lord Fleetwood had drawn up,
a toss from the ring. The meeting of the blue and scarlet coaches drew
forth Old England's thunders; and when the costly treasures contained in
them popped out heads, the moment was delirious. Kit Ines came after his
head on a bound. Ben Todds was ostentatiously deliberate: his party said
he was no dancing-master. He stepped out, grave as a barge emerging from
a lock, though alive to the hurrahs of supporters and punctilious in
returning the formal portion of his rival's too roguish nod. Their look
was sharp into the eyes, just an instant.

Brailstone and Fleetwood jumped to the grass and met, talking and
laughing, precise upon points of business, otherwise cordial:
plenipotentiaries of great powers, whom they have set in motion and
bind to the ceremonial opening steps, according to the rules of civilized
warfare. They had a short colloquy with newspaper reporters;--
an absolutely fair, square, upright fight of Britons was to be
chronicled. Captain Abrane, a tower in the crowd, registered bets
whenever he could. Curricles, gigs, carts, pony-traps, boys on ponies,
a swarm on legs, flowed to the central point and huddled there.