For Beauchamp looked his very best just now. There was a kindly light in his blue eyes, which added greatly to their attractiveness, a slight air of deference had replaced his usual calm, somewhat supercilious self-possession; he looked altogether younger and brighter and heartier. He felt rewarded for the amiability and tact (a quality on the possession of which he rather prided himself) he had shown, when Mr Laurence proceeded to touch upon practical matters. The sum he named as the yearly allowance he intended to settle on Eugenia exceeded Captain Chancellor's expectations, if indeed he may be said to have had any; for when habitually calculating, self-considering persons act upon impulse, throwing prudence to the winds, their recklessness is apt to exceed that of more impetuous natures--a certain mortification at having disregarded their accepted rule of conduct renders the remembrance of the inconsistency unpalatable; for the time being they bury all practical considerations out of sight. So Beauchamp was perfectly sincere, and Mr Laurence could see that he was so, when he exclaimed-- "You are very generous, very generous indeed. I had no idea of anything so liberal. Indeed, to tell the truth, I fear I gave little thought to this part of the matter at all," (for now that his rashness had not turned out so badly, after all, he began to be rather proud of it). "I suppose," with a smile, "I thought only of Eugenia herself. But of course--for _her_ sake--I don't hesitate to say I am very glad of what you tell me--very glad indeed." And the interview ended with mutual satisfaction. "Yes," thought Beauchamp, as he returned to the drawing-room, where Eugenia was awaiting the result of the tete-a-tete in "papa's study," not, it must be confessed, with any great amount of anxiety, for her faith in her father was great, her ignorance of money matters unlimited--"Yes," thought Captain Chancellor, "we shall be able to scrub on. After all of course it will be only what Gertrude calls `genteel starvation.' How she used to ring the changes on that for Roma's benefit! But Eugenia will have quite as much as _she_ would have had, and with much less expensive tastes. And in the old days, when I was determined to marry Roma, I used to make out it would not be so very bad. Of course there is the difference in other ways, position and connection and all that, to be taken into account, but after all--" "After all" things looked well enough for him to respond very cheerfully to Eugenia's, eager inquiries, to add a few more drops of bliss to her already brimming-over cup, by his praises of her father's generosity.