The veteran’s philosophy, which he was fond of putting at the service of his friends, failed him at such a crisis as this, and left him at the mercy of the very commonest of all resources--interjectional expletives. But they did not serve the purpose of the simple explanation his hearer wanted. “Things seem to point to a contract there is no wriggling out of,” Lauriston suggested, as respectfully as the nature of the hint allowed. The Colonel looked at George, and saw that he was at bay. “Perhaps I had better have made a clean breast of it before,” he admitted grimly; “only it’s one of those deuced awkward things a man always shunts as long as he can. I did go through a form of marriage with the--the lady’s mother.” “With Madame di Valdestillas?” “Oh, ah, yes, with Madame di Valdestillas. Of course she--she wasn’t Madame di Valdestillas then. She was a little half-bred Indian gipsy.” George looked cold. The light tone Lord Florencecourt now seemed inclined to take, was not, all things considered, in the best taste. “She was your wife, then?” he said. The Colonel answered by a slight convulsion of the top vertebræ of his spine, to admit as little of the accusation as possible. “Did you divorce her?” he asked, rather puzzled. “Well, I don’t know whether a divorce out there would be held quite regular over here. There’s the difficulty, you see.” From which George gathered in a flash of astonishment that the austere and respectable viscount had, when the chain of his first matrimonial alliance grew irksome, troubled no court of law to regain his liberty. “You understand,” continued the Colonel, meeting his companion’s eyes full for the first time, “that it is quite as much to the lady’s interest as to mine that the affair should not become common gossip.” “To the mother’s interest, perhaps, not to the daughter’s,” said George coldly. “How does she suffer? She is received everywhere, made a fuss with, treated as a lion, as if she were descended from the skies. Would it improve her position for it to be known that her mother had been divorced, legally or illegally? What better provision could I, a poor man, make for her than I do, if she were my acknowledged legitimate daughter?” “Provision!” “Yes, I allow her a thousand a year, supposed to have been left her. Why not? She is under no obligation, and I----” “--Will be relieved from the charge for the future. I guessed something of it this morning, of course, and was only anxious to know how much we owed you.” “Owed me! It is not a debt. I acknowledge, I am the first to acknowledge, the claims of my own child, especially now she is your wife.” “Oh, I acknowledge the claims too. It is only my pride that makes me waive them on behalf of my wife. Until I know all the circumstances of the case I prefer to stand independently.” “Why, what further circumstances do you want to know?”