54 The Real Charlotte. 



after a long and, on the whole, extremely unpleasant period 

 of matrimony, she was now enjoying a species of Indian 

 summer, dating from six years back, when Christopher's 

 coming of age and the tenants' rejoicings thereat, had caused 

 such a paroxysm of apoplectic jealousy on the part of Chris- 

 topher's father as, combining with the heat of the day, had 

 brought on a "stroke." Since then the bath-chair and 

 James Canavan had mercifully intervened between him and 

 the rest of the world, and his offspring were now able to fly 

 before him with a frankness and success impossible in the 

 old days. 



Pamela did not answer her mother at once. 



*' Do you know I'm afraid Christopher isn't with her," she 

 said, looking both guilty and perturbed. 



Lady Dysart groaned aloud. 



" Why, where is he ? " she demanded. ** I left Evelyn 

 helping him to paste in photographs after breakfast; I 

 thought that would have been nice occupation for them for 

 at least two hours ; but as for Christopher — " she continued, 

 her voice deepening to declamation, " it is quite hopeless to 

 expect anything from him. I should rather trust Garry to 

 entertain anyone. The day he took her out in the boat they 

 weren't in till six o'clock ! " 



'* That was because Garry ran the punt on the shallow, 

 and they had to wade ashore and walk all the way round." 



" That has nothing to say to it ; at all events they had 

 something to talk about when they came back, which is 

 more than Christopher has when he has been out sailing. 

 It is most disheartening ; I ask nice girls to the house, but 

 I might just as well ask nice boys — Oh, of course, yes — " 

 in answer to a protest from her daughter ; " he talks to 

 them ; but you know quite well what I mean." 



This complaint was not the first indication of Lady 

 Dysart's sentiments about this curious son whom she had 

 produced. She was a clever woman, a renowned solver of 

 the acrostics in her society paper, and a holder of strong 

 opinions as to the prophetic meaning of the Pyramids ; but 

 Christopher was an acrostic in a strange language, an enigma 

 beyond her sphere. She had a vague but rooted feeling 

 that young men were normally in love with somebody, or at 

 east pretending to be so ; it was, of course, an excellent 



