With this story Mrs. Dareville drew all attention from the jar, to Lady Clonbrony’s infinite mortification.

Lady Langdale at length turned to look at a vast range of china jars.

‘Ali Baba and the forty thieves!’ exclaimed Mrs. Dareville; ’I hope you have boiling oil ready!’

Lady Clonbrony was obliged to laugh, and to vow that Mrs. Dareville was uncommon pleasant to-night.  ‘But now,’ said her ladyship, ’let me take you on to the Turkish tent.’

Having with great difficulty got the malicious wit out of the pagoda and into the Turkish tent, Lady Clonbrony began to breathe more freely; for here she thought she was upon safe ground:  ’Everything, I flatter myself’ said she, ‘is correct and appropriate, and quite picturesque.’  The company, dispersed in happy groups, or reposing on seraglio ottomans, drinking lemonade and sherbet beautiful Fatimas admiring, or being admired—­’Everything here quite correct, appropriate, and picturesque,’ repeated Mrs. Dareville.

This lady’s powers as a mimic were extraordinary, and she found them irresistible.  Hitherto she had imitated Lady Clonbrony’s air and accent only behind her back; but, bolder grown, she now ventured, in spite of Lady Langdale’s warning pinches, to mimic her kind hostess before her face, and to her face.  Now, whenever Lady Clonbrony saw anything that struck her fancy in the dress of her fashionable friends, she had a way of hanging her head aside, and saying, with a peculiar sentimental drawl—­

’How pretty!—­how elegant!  Now that quite suits my TEESTE!  This phrase, precisely in the same accent, and with the head set to the same angle of affectation, Mrs. Dareville had the assurance to address to her ladyship, apropos to something which she pretended to admire in Lady Clonbrony’s costume—­a costume which, excessively fashionable in each of its parts, was, all together, so extraordinarily unbecoming as to be fit for a print-shop.  The perception of this, added to the effect of Mrs. Dareville’s mimicry, was almost too much for Lady Langdale; she could not possibly have stood it, but for the appearance of Miss Nugent at this instant behind Lady Clonbrony.  Grace gave one glance of indignation which seemed suddenly to strike Mrs. Dareville.  Silence for a moment ensued, and afterwards the tone of the conversation was changed.

‘Salisbury!—­explain this to me,’ said a lady, drawing Mr. Salisbury aside.  ’If you are in the secret, do explain this to me; for unless I had seen it, I could not have believed it.  Nay, though I have seen it, I do not believe it.  How was that daring spirit laid?  By what spell?’

‘By the spell which superior minds always cast on inferior spirits.’

‘Very fine,’ said the lady, laughing, ’but as old as the days of Leonora de Galigai, quoted a million times.  Now tell me something new and to the purpose, and better suited to modern days.’

’Well, then, since you will not allow me to talk of superior minds in the present days, let me ask you if you have never observed that a wit, once conquered in company by a wit of a higher order, is thenceforward in complete subjection to the conqueror, whenever and wherever they meet.’