That the late Admiral FitzHenry had sorely misplaced his confidence
in the first instance was a fact which the two boys were now called
upon to face alone in their youthful ignorance of the world. Fitz
was uneasily conscious of a feeling of helplessness, as if some all-
powerful protector had suddenly been withdrawn. Their two lives had
been pre-committed to the parental care of their country, and now it
almost took their breath away to realise that Luke had no such
protector.

His was the pride that depreciates self. During the last twenty-
four hours Fitz had heard him boast of his failure, holding it up
with a singularly triumphant sneer, as if he had always distrusted
his destiny and took a certain pleasure in verifying his own
prognostications. There are some men who find a satisfaction in bad
luck which good fortune could never afford them.

In a large house in Grosvenor Gardens two ladies were at that same
moment speaking of the FitzHenrys. It was quite easy to see that
the smaller lady of the two was the mistress of the house, as also
of that vague abstract called the situation. She sat in the most
comfortable chair, which was, by the way, considerably too spacious
for her, and there was a certain aggressive sense of possession
about her attitude and manner.

Had she been a man, one would have said at once that here was a
nouveau riche, ever heedful of the fact that the big room and all
the appurtenances thereof were the fruits of toil and perseverance.
There was a distinct suggestion of self-manufacture about Mrs.
Harrington--distinct, that is to say, to the more subtle-minded.