"Well, in the first place, the one to the editor of _The Morning Post_ will make poor Peter ridiculous, and the other will hurt his feelings, and as I am very fond of Peter you cannot expect me to be enthusiastic with either of them, can you?" Lady Tanagra rose and going over to Patricia put her arm round her and kissed her on the cheek, then Patricia did a very foolish thing. Without a word of warning she threw her arms around Lady Tanagra's neck and burst into tears. "Oh, I'm so wretched, Tanagra! I know I'm a beast and I want to hurt everybody and every thing. I think I should like to hurt you even," she cried, her mood of crying passing as quickly as it had come. "Don't you think we had better just talk the thing out? Now since you have asked my view," continued Lady Tanagra, "I will give it. Your letter to _The Morning Post_ people will make poor Peter the laughing-stock of London. He has many enemies among ambitious mamas. Never have I known him to be attracted towards a girl until you came along. He's really paying you a very great compliment." Patricia sniffed ominously. "Then the letter to Peter would hurt him because--you must forgive me--it is rather brutal, isn't it?" Patricia nodded her head vigorously. "Well," continued Lady Tanagra, "what do you say if we destroy them both?" "But--but--that would leave _The Morning Post_ announcement and P-Peter----" "Don't you think they might both be left, just for the moment? Later you can wipe the floor with them." "But--but--you don't understand, Tanagra," began Patricia. "Don't you think that half the troubles of the world are due to people wanting to understand?" said Lady Tanagra calmly. "I never want to understand. There are certain things I know and these are sufficient for me. In this case I know that I have a very good brother and he wants to marry a very good girl; but for some reason she won't have anything to do either with him or with me." She looked up into Patricia's face with a smile so wholly disarming that Patricia was forced to laugh. "If you knew Patricia's opinion of herself," she said to Lady Tanagra, "you would be almost shocked." "Well, now, will you do something just to please me?" insinuated Lady Tanagra. "You see this big brother of mine has always been more or less my adopted child, and you have it in your power to hurt him more than I want to see him hurt." There was an unusually serious note in Lady Tanagra's voice. "Why not let things go on as they are for the present, then later the engagement can be broken off if you wish it. I'll speak to Peter and see that he is not tiresome." "Oh, but he's never been that!" protested Patricia, then she stopped suddenly in confusion. Lady Tanagra smiled to herself. "Well, if he's never been tiresome I'm sure you wouldn't like to hurt him, would you?" She was speaking as if to a child. "The only person I want to hurt is Aunt Adelaide," said Patricia with a laugh.