Page:Foggerty.djvu/39

Rh “Oh, I'm coming. Dinner party, eh?” said he to himself as he went downstairs. “Rather awkward.”

He entered the drawing-room and shook hands very heartily with Lord Portico, telling him it seemed an age since they met (which it must have done, as this was the first time they had seen each other), and asking very cordially after Lady Portico, who had been dead about six months. Lord Portico's indignant stare proved to him that he had made some mistake, so he was more careful in his demeanour towards Mr. and Mrs. Bortle, bowing coldly but respectfully to them, which was not right either, as Bortle was his wife's father and had procured him his appointment, and Mr. and Mrs. Bortle had just returned from India after an absence of six years, and the meeting ought to have been a very effusive one. Several other guests arrived, including Mr. and Mrs. Crabthorne (Mrs. Crabthorne was Lady Foggerty's sister) and Sir John Carboy, the eminent accoucheur, who had presided at the birth of Freddy's two little children. In short, it was quite a family party, as Freddy took occasion to observe in an under-breath to Lady Foggerty, who replied, “Well, I should think so, and on this day, too, of all others!”

“I wonder what day of all others this is! I don't like to ask,” thought he.

“By-the-bye, dear,” said Lady Foggerty, “I forgot to give you this.” And she slipped into his hand a piece of paper containing the list of guests told off into couples. He was rather taken aback, because he only knew the Bortles and Lord Portico by sight, but by dint of listening to the conversation, he contrived to hit on