“With a greatness of pleasure, but His Excellency has commanded me at eleven o’clock and will I be through the tasks at the hour for escorting those calicoes out to your Club for a dance?” I asked with great delight as I continued my operations with the brush upon the rebellious lock.

“You’ll have time if you stop that primping and hustle into your collar and coat.  Here, let me show you how to doctor that place where the cow licked you.  Why don’t you take both brushes to it?  Like this!” With which Mr. Buzz took from my hand the one brush and from the high dressing table the other, for which my ignorance had discovered no use, and did then commence a vigorous assault on my enemy the curl.

“What was it you said of a cow, my Buzz?” I questioned him as I made a squirming under the vigor of his attack upon my hair.

“When hair acts up like this we call it a cowlick in United States language.  See here, L’Aiglon, old boy, this hair looks as if it had at one time been curled.  Did you wear it that way in Paris?” And as he asked the question he gave that side of my hair one more vigorous sweep and stood off to admire his work.

“No, my Buzz, I assure you that it was the cruelty of that cow you mention, while I was at a very tender age,” I answered with a laugh into his eyes that covered nicely the blush that rose to my cheek at his accusation concerning the lovelock.

“Well, knot that tie now in a jiffy and climb into your coat.  Let’s get to the Capitol and give the old boys as little of our attention as they’ll stand for, and then beat it for the girls.  Bet my chief growls blue blazes at me over the way Sue ragged him about you last night.  He’ll issue a command at the point of the bayonet to me to keep you away from the bunch, and I’ll agree just so as to make the slide from under easy.  Come on.”  And while he spoke to me, that Buzz raced me down the hall of my ancestors and out into his very slim, fast car before I could get breath for speaking.

“But suppose His Excellency the Gouverneur Faulkner requires my presence beyond that half hour after eleven o’clock, my Buzz, is it that you will await me for a few short minutes?” I asked of him as we ascended the steps of the Capitol of the State of Harpeth.

“Oh, Bill won’t keep you any longer than that.  He’ll have twenty other interviews on the string for to-day.  Fifteen minutes will be about right for you; you wait for me in the General’s anteroom.  I’ll have to get heroics before instructions.  I always do.  Now beat it.”  With which words my Buzz left me in the wide hall of the great Capitol before a door marked:  “Office of the Governor.”

Upon that door I knocked and it was immediately opened to me by fine black Cato, whose eyes shone in recognition of me.

“Got it in yo’ shoe?” he demanded in a whisper.

“Yes, my good Cato,” I responded also in a low tone of voice.

“Den pass on in to de Governor; he am waitin’ fer you.  You’s safe, chile.”  And he escorted me past several gentlemen seated and standing in groups, to another door, which he opened for me and through which he motioned me to pass.