When, later in the evening, Mr. Havisham presented himself at the
Castle, he was taken at once to the Earl. He found him sitting by the
fire in a luxurious easy-chair, his foot on a gout-stool. He looked
at the lawyer sharply from under his shaggy eyebrows, but Mr. Havisham
could see that, in spite of his pretense at calmness, he was nervous and
secretly excited.

"Well," he said; "well, Havisham, come back, have you? What's the news?"

"Lord Fauntleroy and his mother are at Court Lodge," replied Mr.
Havisham. "They bore the voyage very well and are in excellent health."

The Earl made a half-impatient sound and moved his hand restlessly.

"Glad to hear it," he said brusquely. "So far, so good. Make yourself
comfortable. Have a glass of wine and settle down. What else?"

"His lordship remains with his mother to-night. To-morrow I will bring
him to the Castle."

The Earl's elbow was resting on the arm of his chair; he put his hand up
and shielded his eyes with it.

"Well," he said; "go on. You know I told you not to write to me about
the matter, and I know nothing whatever about it. What kind of a lad is
he? I don't care about the mother; what sort of a lad is he?"

Mr. Havisham drank a little of the glass of port he had poured out for
himself, and sat holding it in his hand.