"Wait and hear what you're required to do, sir, before you give an opinion. The person to whom I allude is at the present moment in this house. She is therefore, although not invited by me, to a certain extent my guest, and it would be impossible for me to appear in the matter. You comprehend me?" "Perfectly." "Especially as she is to be got rid of at once and for ever. When I say 'got rid of,' I don't mean it in the slang phrase of the penny romances--I don't mean that the woman is to be killed; but simply that she is to be told that she must remain here no longer, and the danger of doing so must be strongly pointed out to her." "Exactly, je twig! Now will you please to tell me the name of this good lady, and what reason I'm to give for insisting on her leaving such a very swell and pleasant crib as this appears to be?" "She is called here Miss Gillespie," said Sir Charles; "but You will have heard of her under a very different name--Lizzie Ponsford." "What!" exclaimed Mr. Effingham, leaping from his chair; "Lizzie Ponsford here! She whom I've been--" "Well, sir?" asked Sir Charles in astonishment. "Whom I've been hearing so much about!" said Mr. Effingham, recovering himself. "Lizzie Ponsford here!" he continued, going off again. "Well, that is a rum start!" "Be good enough to attend to me, sir. She is here, and she is in my way. Her presence worries me, bringing back all sorts of hideous associations that I thought I had got rid of, and never want to have revived. You must see her, talk to her, and get her to go at once; once gone, I could so arrange matters as to leave little chance of her returning." "I see!" said Mr. Effingham. "Now the question is, how to work her out of this. What would be the best way to frighten her and get her under your thumb?" "What is your notion on that point?" "I scarcely know yet! It will want a little thinking over, but I've no doubt I shall be able to hit upon something. Is she pretty comfortable where she is--likely not to give it up without a struggle?" "You may take your oath she will not move unless compelled--it is for you to find the something that will compel her." "Exactly. Well, I don't think that there will be much difficulty about that--at least," said he, correcting himself, for he feared that comparative facility might lessen the reward--"at least, not much difficulty for a man whose head's screwed on the right way. Now about the payment?" Sir Charles opened a drawer in his desk, and from a little _rouleau_ of gold counted out ten sovereigns. The chink of the money sounded deliciously in Mr. Effingham's hungry ears. "I will give you these ten sovereigns now," said Sir Charles; "and if you succeed in carrying out all I have told you, I will give you fifty more."