■ Alverstoke had lost not a mail in replying, but to his letter
no response had come. As the letter had been of im-
portance, and of possibly pleasant, certainly not of
unpleasant importance, he could form no other conjec-
ture than that it had been lost.
Being of an easy nature, he did not give himself
much concern in the matter. If Harry Dorrien should
turn up, well and good ; should by any chance be able
to repay him his loan of four thousand pounds, slill
more well and good ; but if, on the other hand, nothing
further were heard of Dorrien, he could not help it
Nothing having been heard by the time he went back
to London about the middle of January, he formed his
own conclusions.
^one a-mucker," he said to himself, " Those Dor-
riens are all Ds of another sort at bottom. "

It chanced that he was standing in the window of
his club a few weeks after this. It was a cold, brilliant
afternoon ; but the air had only a delicious exhilaration
for the young and rich ; and the gayly attired fair ones
who, clad in velvet and fur, reclined at ease in open
landau, barouche, or victoria, whirling in swift succes-
-sion along that fashionable quarter, looking all the bel-
ter and brighter for the bloom the fresh clear atmos-
phere brought to their rounded cheeks,

Within a handsomely appointed equipage sat two
erect, graceful young figures, whose outlines at once
caught the eye of our lounger. He started, bent quickly
forward, andappeared desirous of ascerlaiuing whelher
or not his first glimpse had been one of correct recog-
nition, or whether he had been misled by a fancied
Resemblance.
