Eustace made no reply to this onslaught, but walked to and fro in silence. He was considerably puzzled how to act in this dilemma, as he had made up his mind not to see Lady Errington, thinking his feelings towards her were too strong for him to keep silence. Curiously enough it never seemed to strike him that as Alizon was neglecting her own husband for the child, it was unlikely she would respond to his passion in any way, seeing that she had neither eyes nor ears for anything save her first-born. Gartney's egotism blinded him on this occasion, as it did on many others, but he felt that he was being forced into a situation, towards the woman he loved, from whence there was no escape. Looking at it in his narrow-minded fashion, it seemed a struggle between love and honour, and he was undecided how to act. All his life, however, he had been accustomed to deny himself nothing, and in this case he carried out his ruling principle of selfishly gratifying himself, so there and then made up his mind to accept Aunt Jelly's mission and go down to Errington Hall. "Well, Eustace," said Aunt Jelly sharply, quite unaware of the struggle going on in her nephew's mind, "what do you say--will you do a kind action for once in your life?" Eustace having made up his mind, came slowly back to his elderly relation and resumed his chair. "I'm sorry you've got such a bad opinion of me, Aunt Jelly," he said coolly, "and I'll have much pleasure in proving you're wrong for once in your life, by going down to Ellington Hall, and having a talk with Guy." "That's right," replied Miss Corbin, much gratified. "And I suppose you'll have a look at your own place." "Of course!" "I thought so, you never did a thing in your life without a double motive," said Aunt Jelly, unjustly. "However, I don't care two straws what you go down for, so long as you try and put things right between those two idiots." "Kindly opinion you've got of human nature, Aunt." "No doubt, I have," retorted Miss Jelly, coolly, "but that's human nature's own fault, not mine." "Do you remember what wise La Rochefoucauld says?" observed Eustace, thoughtfully. "'Many people judge the world as if they were its judges, and not its denizens.' That is true, I think." "I don't like your cut and dried wisdom, Mr. Quoter-of-old-saws," replied Aunt Jelly, "there's sure to be a flaw in it somewhere." Eustace laughed and leaned back in his chair. "You've got an answer for everything, Aunt Jelly! Well, I'll go down to Errington, and do my best, but I'm doubtful of success. It's foolish work meddling between man and wife." Miss Corbin sniffed in a doubtful manner, and was about to make some bitter reply, when the door opened and Victoria, bright and piquant as ever, entered the room. "Here I am, Aunt Jelly," she cried gaily, "with not one of your orders forgotten--Mr. Gartney!" "How do you do, Miss Sheldon?" said that gentleman rising from his seat, "it's some time since we met."