It may be thought that Sophie’s standing with Lady Ongar would be a great advantage to her brother; but I doubt whether the brother trusted either the honesty or the discretion of his sister.  He would have been willing to purchase such assistance as she might give—­not in Archie’s pleasant way, with bank-notes hidden under his glove—­but by acknowledgments for services to be turned into solid remuneration when the marriage should have taken place, had he not feared that Sophie might communicate the fact of such acknowledgments to the other lady—­making her own bargain in doing so.  He had calculated all this, and had come to the conclusion that he had better make no direct proposal to Sophie; and when Sophie made a direct proposal to him, pointing out to him in glowing language all the fine things which such a marriage would give him, he had hardly vouchsafed to her a word of answer.  “Very well,” said Sophie to herself; “very well.  Then we both know what we are about.”

Sophie herself would have kept Lady Ongar from marrying any one had she been able.  Not even a brother’s gratitude would be so serviceable to her as the generous kindness of a devoted friend.  That she might be able both to sell her services to a lover, and also to keep Julie from marrying, was a lucky combination of circumstances which did not occur to her till Archie came to her with the money in his glove.  That complicated game she was now playing, and was aware that Harry Clavering was the great stumbling-block in her way.  A woman even less clever than Sophie would have perceived that Lady Ongar was violently attached to Harry; and Sophie, when she did see it, thought that there was nothing left for her but to make her hay while the sun was yet shining.  Then she heard the story of Florence Burton; and again she thought that Fortune was on her side.  She told the story of Florence Burton—­with what result we know; and was quite sharp enough to perceive afterward that the tale had had its intended effect—­even though her Julie had resolutely declined to speak either of Harry Clavering or of Florence Burton.

Count Pateroff had again called in Bolton Street, and had again been refused admittance.  It was plain to him to see by the servant’s manner that it was intended that he should understand that he was not to be admitted.  Under such circumstances, it was necessary that he must either abandon his pursuit, or that he must operate upon Lady Ongar through some other feeling than her personal regard for himself.  He might, perhaps, have trusted much to his own eloquence if he could have seen her; but how is a man to be eloquent in his wooing if he cannot see the lady whom he covets?  There is, indeed, the penny post, but in these days of legal restraints, there is no other method of approaching an unwilling beauty.  Forcible abduction is put an end to as regards Great Britain and Ireland.  So the count had resort to the post.