Produced by Delphine Lettau and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net THE ARBITER A NOVEL BY LADY F. E. E. BELL AUTHOR OF THE "STORY OF URSULA," "MISS TOD AND THE PROPHETS," "FAIRY-TALE PLAYS," ETC., ETC. LONDON EDWARD ARNOLD 37 BEDFORD STREET, STRAND 1901 * * * * * THE ARBITER CHAPTER I "It is a great mistake," said Miss Martin emphatically, "for any sensible woman to show a husband she adores him." "Even her own, Aunt Anna?" said Lady Gore, with a contented smile which Aunt Anna felt to be ignoble. "Of course I meant her own," she said stiffly. "I should hardly have thought, Elinor, that after being married so many years you would have made jokes of that sort." "That is just it," said Lady Gore, still annoyingly pleased with herself. "After adoring my husband for twenty-four years, it seems to me that I am an authority on the subject." "Well, it is a great mistake," repeated Miss Martin firmly, as she got up, feeling that the repetition notably strengthened her position. "As I said before, no sensible woman should do it." Lady Gore began to feel a little annoyed. It is fatiguing to hear one's aunt say the same thing twice. The burden of conversation is unequally distributed if one has to think of two answers to each one remark of one's interlocutor. "And you are bringing up Rachel to do the same thing, you know," the old lady went on, roused to fresh indignation at the thought of her great-niece, and she pulled her little cloth jacket down, and generally shook herself together. Crabbed age and jackets should not live together. Age should be wrapped in the ample and tolerant cloak, hider of frailties. It was not Aunt Anna's fault, however, if her garments were uncompromising and scanty of outline. Predestination reigns nowhere more strongly than in clothes, and it would have been inconceivable that either Miss Martin's body or her mind should have assimilated the harmonious fluid adaptability of the draperies that framed and surrounded Lady Gore as she lay on her couch. "I don't think it does her much harm," said Lady Gore, a good deal understating her conviction of her daughter's perfections. "That's as may be," said Miss Martin encouragingly. "Where is she to-day, by the way?" she said, stopping on her way to the door. "For a wonder she is not at home," Lady Gore said. "She has gone to stay away from me for the first time in her life; she is at Mrs. Feversham's, at Maidenhead, for the night." "How girls do gad nowadays, to be sure!" said Miss Martin. "I hardly think that can be said of Rachel," said Lady Gore. "Whether Rachel does or not, my dear Elinor, girls do gad--there is no doubt about that. I'm sorry I have not seen William. He is too busy, I suppose," with a slightly ironical intonation. "Goodbye!" "Can you find your way out?" said Lady Gore, ringing a hand-bell. "Oh dear, yes," said Miss Martin. "Goodbye," and out she went.