Ravenshoe. By Henry Kingsley.

LADY HAINAULT'S BLOTTING-BOOK. 295
party!)* But Lady Hainault said nothing to her; but, taking
the book from under her arm, she sat down and fiercely scrawled
off a note to Lord Saltire, to be opened by any of them, to say
that Charles Ravenshoe was then in her house, and to come in
God's name.
"I have caged their bird for them," she said out loud when she
had just finished and was folding up the letter; " they will owe
me a good turn for this."
The maid, who had no notion anything was the matter, had
been surreptitiously looking in the glass again, and wondering
whether her nose was really so very red after all. When Lady
Hainault spoke thus aloud to herself, she gave a guilty start, and
said, "Immediately, my lady," which you will perceive was not
exactly appropriate to the occasion.
" Don't be a goose, my good old Alwright, and don't tread on
my necklace, Alwright; it is close at your feet."
So it was. Lying where Mary had dropped it. Alwright
thought she must have knocked it off the dressing-table; but,
when Lady Hainault told her that Miss Corby had dropped it
there, Alwright began to wonder why her ladyship had not thought
it worth while to pick it up again.
i' Put it on while I seal this letter, will you? I cannot trust
you, Alwright; I must go myself." She went out of the room
and quickly down-stairs to the hall. All this had taken but a few
minutes; she had hurried as much as was possible, but the time
seems longer to us, because, following my usual plan of playing
the fool on important occasions, I have been telling you about the
lady-maid's nose. She went down quickly to the hall, and sent
off one of the men to South Audley Street with her note, giving
him orders to run all the way, and personally to see Lady Ascot,
or some one else of those named. After this she came up-stairs
again.
When she came to the drawing-room door, Charles was standing
at it. "Lady Hainault," he said, " would you come here, please?
Poor 3Mary has fainted."
"Poor thing," said Lady Hainault. "I will come to her. One
word, Mr. Ravenshoe. O, do think one instant of this fatal,
miserable resolution of yours. Think how fond we have all been
of you. Think of the love that your cousin and Lady Ascot bear
for you, and communicate with them. At all events stay ten
minutes more, and see one of them. I must go to poor Mary."
" Dear Lady Hainault, you will not change my resolution to
stand alone. There is a source of disgrace you probably know
nothing of. Besides, nothing short of an Order in Council could
stop me now. We sail for the East in twenty-four hours."
* Which is a crib from Sir E. B. L. B. L.