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120 "I do not mean to say that he will obtain it, but I cannot use any influence to counteract Sir Charles's interest; for he is in the committee of our railroad bill, now passing the house; and were I to oppose him, he would inevitably vote against me." To this equitable arrangement Charles could give no answer, and with a heavy heart he followed his companion to the drawing-room: apparently, however, Lord Penrhyn could not satisfactorily dismiss the subject from his mind, for while stirring his second cup of coffee he said, "Do you know, Julia, that Charles has taken some wild-goose fancy into his head about marrying?" "Why, what heiress have you picked up?" asked his sister. "I am sure that I am very glad of it, though I cannot form a guess who it is. I never knew a season so unprofitable in that respect as the present." "An heiress, Charles!" cried Lord Penrhyn; "that alters my view of the whole matter; why could you not tell me?" "I could not," replied Charles, "tell you what did not exist. I only spoke of the matter generally," added he, very little desirous that his sister should form a guess of how matters stood; it would inevitably lead to his losing his chief opportunity of improving his situation. "A great heiress is certainly a temptation," continued his sister. "I tell you, there is no heiress in the case,"