Page:Marsh--The seen and the unseen.djvu/321

Rh my whole labour's thrown away, and my whole purpose spoiled!"

"My dear mother, what does it matter?"

The young lady not only spoke with her lips, but also with her eyes. With her organs of vision she drew her mother's attention to the fact that they were not alone in the carriage. The elder lady grasped her daughter's meaning. But as she glanced at the stranger at the other end, she scarcely took that advantage of the hint which she was intended to take.

"And now, although you know how much I like to have a carriage to myself, and how much I object to travelling with strangers, you have allowed that insolent man—and I am thankful to think that he lost the five shillings which I quite intended to give him—to put us just where it pleased him. It's just like you!"

To this observation Miss Paynter answered nothing. She looked at her mother, and out of the comers of her eyes she peeped at the stranger. As she peeped she smiled; it was but the faintest shadow of a smile, but it was certainly a smile. The stranger was a solid-looking young man, short and broad. He had rather a vacuous expression of countenance. His cheeks, which were innocent of whiskers, were fat and red. Altogether he did not seem to be the sort of person who was likely to be hurt by a trifle, which, under the circumstances, was perhaps as well. None the less, he appeared curiously disconcerted by a remark which Mrs. Paynter all at once addressed to him.

"Excuse me, sir, but are you acquainted with the Earl of Datchet?"