Page:Robert Barr - Lord Stranleigh Philanthropist.djvu/298

 soon to increase until it becomes a suitable enclosure for a strong man's arm, looming above the horizon as the inevitable She, and Stranleigh's pose of indifference to women, in which, if he only knew it, he is a mere plagiarist of my Lord Kitchener, will dissolve."

"Oh, your brain is dissolving. What are you howling about?"

"Your High Mightiness is formally addressed in these presents by His Excellency the Austrian Ambassador. It seems that the Baroness von Arrenfels, only daughter and heiress of the late Baron von Arrenfels, is now in England on account of her health. She is something of an invalid. She desires an interview with Lord Stranleigh of Wychwood, in order to speak upon financial matters. The numerous estates in Austria which belonged to her father are now hers, and apparently she wishes the advice of one who has managed so well his own extensive properties in England and elsewhere. She probably imagines you a dried-up old financial duffer who will temporarily take the place of her aged parents, now no more. Wait a moment, and I will learn further particulars."

They were in the library, and Blake took down from the shelves a thick red volume. Turning