'You did not expect to see me here among the investors who have been calling upon you, Mr. Kenyon, did you?' Kenyon held out his hand, and said: 'I am very pleased indeed to see you, whether you come as an investor or not.' 'And so this is your new office?' she cried, looking round. 'How you have blossomed out, haven't you? These offices are as fine as any in the City.' 'Yes,' said John; 'they are too fine to suit me.' 'Oh, I don't see why you should not have handsome offices as well as anyone else. You have been in my father's place of business, of course. But it is not so grand as these rooms.' 'I think that helps to show the absurdity of ours. Your father's house is an old-standing one, and this gives us an air of new riches which, I must confess, I don't like, especially as we have not the riches.' 'Then, why did you agree to have such offices? I suppose you had something to say about them?' 'Very little, I must own. They were engaged while I was in the North, and after they had been engaged, of course I did not like to say anything against them.' 'Well, and how is the mine getting on? You have not applied to me yet to fulfil my offer, which I think was a very fair one.' 'I have not needed to do so,' said Kenyon. 'Ah, then, subscriptions are coming in, are they? Where is the list?' 'We have no list yet. We are waiting for your cousin, who is in the North.' 'In the North!' said Edith, with her eyes open wide. 'He is not in the North; he is in Paris, and we expect him home to-night.' 'Oh, indeed!' said John, who made no further comment. 'Now, where's your subscription-list? Oh, you told me you have none yet. Very well; this sheet of paper will do.' And the young woman drew some lines across the paper, heading it, 'The Canadian Mica-mine.' Then underneath she wrote the name Edith Longworth, and after it--'For ten thousand pounds.' 'There! I am the first subscriber to the new company; if you get the others as easily, you will be very fortunate.' And, before John could thank her, she laughingly turned to her companion, and said: 'We must go.' CHAPTER XXV. When Wentworth dropped in to see if anything had happened, Kenyon told him that young Longworth was not in the North at all, but in Paris. Wentworth pondered over this piece of information for a moment, and said: