“That’s right.  That’s right.  Stick to that and I’ll stick to you.  It will be a great gratification to me to have by me a friend of my old friend De Guest.  Tell him I say so.  And now you may as well get into harness at once.  FitzHoward is there.  You can go in to him, and at half-past four exactly I’ll see you both.  I’m very exact, mind,—­very;—­and therefore you must be exact.”  Then Sir Raffle looked as though he desired to be left alone.

“Sir Raffle, there’s one favour I want to ask of you,” said Johnny.

“And what’s that?”

“I am most anxious to be absent for a fortnight or three weeks, just at Easter.  I shall want to go in about ten days.”

“Absent for three weeks at Easter, when the parliamentary work is beginning!  That won’t do for a private secretary.”

“But it’s very important, Sir Raffle.”

“Out of the question, Eames; quite out of the question.”

“It’s almost life and death to me.”

“Almost life and death.  Why, what are you going to do?” With all his grandeur and national importance, Sir Raffle would be very curious as to little people.

“Well, I can’t exactly tell you, and I’m not quite sure myself.”

“Then don’t talk nonsense.  It’s impossible that I should spare my private secretary just at that time of the year.  I couldn’t do it.  The service won’t admit of it.  You’re not entitled to leave at that season.  Private secretaries always take their leave in the autumn.”

“I should like to be absent in the autumn too, but—­”

“It’s out of the question, Mr Eames.”

Then John Eames reflected that it behoved him in such an emergency to fire off his big gun.  He had a great dislike to firing this big gun, but, as he said to himself, there are occasions which make a big gun very necessary.  “I got a letter from Lord De Guest this morning, pressing me very much to go to him at Easter.  It’s about business,” added Johnny.  “If there was any difficulty, he said, he should write to you.”

“Write to me,” said Sir Raffle, who did not like to be approached too familiarly in his office, even by an earl.

“Of course I shouldn’t tell him to do that.  But, Sir Raffle, if I remained out there, in the office,” and Johnny pointed towards the big room with his head, “I could choose April for my month.  And as the matter is so important to me, and to the earl—­”

“What can it be?” said Sir Raffle.

“It’s quite private,” said John Eames.

Hereupon Sir Raffle became very petulant, feeling that a bargain was being made with him.  This young man would only consent to become his private secretary upon certain terms!  “Well, go in to FitzHoward now.  I can’t lose all my day in this way.”

“But I shall be able to get away at Easter?”