‘And have you been at Rome, Mr Gresham?’ said the young lady, turning almost abruptly round to Frank, and giving a somewhat uncivilly cold shoulder to Mrs Proudie’s exhortation.  She, poor lady, was forced to finish her speech to the Honourable George, who was standing near to her.  He having an idea that bishops and all their belongings, like other things appertaining to religion, should, if possible, be avoided; but if that were not possible, should be treated with much assumed gravity, immediately put on a long face, and remarked that—­’it was a deuced shame:  for his part he always liked to see people go quiet on Sundays.  The parsons had only one day out of seven, and he thought they were fully entitled to that.’  Satisfied with which, or not satisfied, Mrs Proudie had to remain silent till dinner-time.

‘No,’ said Frank; ’I never was in Rome.  I was in Paris once, that’s all.’  And then, feeling not unnatural anxiety as to the present state of Miss Dunstable’s worldly concerns, he took an opportunity of falling back on that part of her conversation which Mrs Proudie had exercised so much tact in avoiding.

‘And was it sold?’ said he.

‘Sold! what sold?’

’You were saying about the business—­that you came back without going to bed because of selling the business.’

’Oh!—­the ointment.  No; it was not sold.  After all, the affair did not come off, and I might have remained and had another roll in the snow.  Wasn’t it a pity?’

‘So,’ said Frank to himself, ’if I should do it, I should be owner of the ointment of Lebanon:  how odd!’ And then he gave her his arm and handed her down to dinner.

He certainly found that his dinner was less dull than any other he had sat down to at Courcy Castle.  He did not fancy that he should ever fall in love with Miss Dunstable; but she certainly was an agreeable companion.  She told him of her tour, and the fun she had in her journeys; how she took a physician with her for the benefit of her health, whom she generally was forced to nurse; of the trouble it was to her to look after and wait upon her numerous servants; of the tricks she played to bamboozle people who came to stare at her; and, lastly, she told him of a lover who followed her from country to country, and was now in hot pursuit of her, having arrived in London the evening before she left.

‘A lover?’ said Frank, somewhat startled by the suddenness of the confidence.

‘A lover—­yes—­Mr Gresham; why should I not have a lover?’

‘Oh!—­no—­of course not.  I dare say you have had a good many.’

’Only three or four, upon my word; that is, only three or four that I favour.  One is not bound to reckon the others, you know.’

’No, they’d be too numerous.  And so you have three whom you favour, Miss Dunstable;’ and Frank sighed, as though he intended to say that the number was too many for his peace of mind.