THE HAUGHTYSHIRE HUNT. 93 



Septimus pulled himself up short, in the act of conveyhig 

 a piece of preserved ginger to his mouth. Trousers opened 

 his vacuous blue eyes ^vide^ than ever. 



" Oh ! really ! " he squeaked, and then incontinently ' dried 

 up.' 



Mrs. Binkie was the first to recover her outward equa- 

 nimity. Largely mingled with her annoyance at having assumed 

 a patronising air to the ' scion of a noble house,' as she 

 afterwards described him, was the delight she felt at having 

 thus entertained an angel unawares. That the nephew of a 

 duke should be seated at her table, his next-door-to-ducal legs 

 beneath her own mahogan}- — this was glory indeed. ' Binkie's 

 Composites ' seemed to be left very far astern now. 



" I'm sure, sir — ahem, I sure, Mr. "(the plain ' Mr.' 



seemed almost sacrilege in her mouth now) " Mr. Yarboro, 

 it's very kind of you to see about our getting tickets, and — 



and " and here she came to a full stop. She wanted to say 



something to the effect that he, Mr. Yarboro, might rely on 

 their behaving themselves properly at the ball, but was fortu- 

 nately deterred from so doing by a dim fear that perhaps it 

 would not be quite correct. Not exactly knowing whether to 

 say anything of the kind or not, she took the wise course of 

 signalling to her daughter, and amid the noise of chairs being 

 pushed back and feet shuffling on the parquet flooring, the 

 ladies left their lords and masters in undisturbed possession of 

 the wines and a very choice box of Septimus's regalias, which 

 he promptly proceeded to push round the table. 



" Gave one-and-three apiece for these, 'olesale," he observed, 

 with a solemn air; •' and then I had to take ten boxes." 



" Indeed," answered the Piector, as he took his third whiff. 



