Even Lady Grillyer was a trifle taken aback at this description of her son-in-law, while Alicia turned scarlet with anger.

“I don’t believe he said anything of the sort!” she cried.  “You both of you only want to hurt me and insult Rudolph!  I won’t stand it!”

She was already on her feet to leave them, when her mother stopped her, and Sir Justin hastened to explain.

“No reflection upon the Baron’s character was intended, I assure you.  The Prince merely meant to imply that he represented the social rather than the business side of the embassy.  And both are equally necessary, I assure you—­equally essential, Baroness, believe me.”

“In fact,” said the Countess, “the remark comes to this, that Rudolph would never be sent to Russia, whatever else they might expect of him.”

Even through their tears Alicia’s eyes brightened with triumph.

“But he has gone, mamma!  I got a letter from him this morning—­from St. Petersburg!”

The satisfaction of her two physicians on hearing this piece of good news took the form of a start which might well have been mistaken for mere astonishment, or even for dismay.

“And you did not tell me of it!” cried her mother.

“Rudolph did not wish me to.  I have only told you now to prove how utterly wrong you both are.”

“Let me see this letter!”

“Indeed, mamma, I won’t!”

The two ladies looked at one another with such animosity that Sir Justin felt called upon to interfere.

“Suppose the Baroness were to read us as much as is necessary to convince us that there is no possibility of a mistake,” he suggested.

So profoundly did the Countess respect his advice that she graciously waived her maternal rights so far as actually following the text with her eyes went; while her daughter, after a little demur, was induced to depart this one step further from her husband’s injunctions.

“You have no objections to my glancing at the post-mark?” said Sir Justin when this point was settled.

With a toss of her head the Baroness silently handed him the envelope.

“It seems correct,” he observed cautiously.

“But post-marks can be forged, can’t they?” inquired the Countess.

“I fear they can,” he admitted, with a sorrowful air.

Scorning to answer this insinuation, the Baroness proceeded to read aloud the following extracts

" ’I travelled with comfort through Europe, and having by many countries passed, such as Germany and others, I arrived, my dear Alicia, in Russia.’ "

“Is that all he says about his journey?” interrupted Lady Grillyer.

“It is certainly a curiously insufficient description of a particularly interesting route,” commented Sir Justin.

“It almost seems as if he didn’t know what other countries lie between England and Russia,” added the Countess.