142 The Real Charlotte. 



" Mercy on us ! That's not Miss Dysart ! What has she 

 her face blackened for ? " 



" Oh, I did that when I didn't know much about it last 

 winter, and it's rather over-exposed," answered Christopher, 

 regarding his work of art with a lenient parental eye. 



" The poor thing I And was it the cold turned her black 

 that way ? " 



Christopher glanced at his companion's face to see whether 

 this ignorance was genuine, but before he had time to offer 

 the scientific explanation, she had pounced on a group 

 below. 



" Why, isn't that the butler ? Goodness ! he's the dead 

 image of the Roman Emperors in Mangnall's questions ! 

 And who are all the other people? I declare, one of 

 them's that queer man I saw in the hall with the old gentle- 

 man — " She stopped and stammered as she realised that 

 she had touched on what must necessarily be a difficult 

 subject. 



" Yes, this is a photograph of the servants," said Chris- 

 topher, filling the pause with compassionate speed, ^' and 

 that's James Canavan. You'll see him to-morrow night 

 taking a leading part in Garry's theatricals." 



" Why, d'ye tell me that man can act ? " 



" Act ? I should think so ! " he laughed, as if at some 

 recollection or other. " He can do anything he tries, or 

 thinks he can. He began by being a sort of hedge-school- 

 master, but he was too mad to stick to it. Anyhow, my 

 father took him up, and put him into the agency office, and 

 now he's his valet, and teaches Garry arithmetic when he's 

 at home, and writes poems and plays. I envy you your 

 first sight of James Canavan on the boards," he ended, 

 laughing again. 



" The boards ! " Francie thought to herself, " I wonder 

 is it like a circus ? " 



The photographs progressed serenely after this. Francie 

 began to learn something of the discreetness that must be 

 observed in inspecting amateur portrait photography, and 

 Christopher, on his side, found he was being better enter- 

 tained by Miss Mullen's cousin than he could have believed 

 possible. They turned page after page steadily and con- 

 versationally, until Christopher made a pause of unconscious 



