it up in the servant's presence. The letter lay there till the man
was out of the room, and then she handed it to Nora. 'Will you give
that to Louis?' she said. 'It comes from the man whom he supposes
to be my lover.'

'Emily!' said he, jumping from his seat, 'how can you allow words
so horrible and so untrue to fall from your mouth?' 'If it be not
so, why am I to be placed in such a position as this? The servant
knows, of course, from whom the letter comes, and sees that I have
been forbidden to open it.' Then the man returned to the room, and
the remainder of the dinner passed off almost in silence. It was
their custom when they dined without company to leave the dining-room
together, but on this evening Trevelyan remained for a few minutes
that he might read Colonel Osborne's letter, He waited, standing on
the rug with his face to the fire-place, till he was quite alone,
and then he opened it. It ran as follows:

'House of Commons, Saturday.

'DEAR EMILY,' Trevelyan, as he read this, cursed Colonel Osborne
between his teeth.

'DEAR EMILY,

I called this afternoon, but you were out. I am afraid you will be
disappointed by what I have to tell you, but you should rather be
glad of it. They say at the C.O. that Sir Marmaduke would not receive
their letter if sent now till the middle of June, and that he could
not be in London, let him do what he would, till the end of July.
They hope to have the session over by that time, and therefore the