Page 101 (1/1)

"What are you two plotting together, aunt Medora?" Madame Olenska cried as she came into the roo about her shilimmered softly, as if her dress had been woven out of candle-beah, like a pretty wo,beautiful to surprise you with," Mrs Manson rejoined, rising to her feet and pointing archly to the flowers

Madame Olenska stopped short and looked at the bouquet Her colour did not change, but a sort of white radiance of anger ran over her like su "Ah," she exclai h to send hts? I aed to be married But some people are always ridiculous"

She turned back to the door, opened it, and called out: "Nastasia!"

The ubiquitous handmaiden promptly appeared, and Archer heard Madame Olenska say, in an Italian that she seemed to pronounce with intentional deliberateness in order that he ht follow it: "Here--throw this into the dustbin!" and then, as Nastasia stared protestingly: "But no--it's not the fault of the poor flowers Tell the boy to carry them to the house three doors away, the house of Mr Winsett, the dark gentleive her pleasureThe boy is out, you say? Then, my dear one, run yourself; here, putout of the house immediately! And, as you live, don't say they co her velvet opera cloak over the -rooh under its lace, and for a ht she was about to cry; but she burst into a laugh instead, and looking from the Marchioness to Archer, asked abruptly: "And you two--have you ; he has waited patiently while you were dressing"

"Yes--I gave you ti her hand to the heaped-up curls of her chignon "But that reone, and you'll be late at the Blenkers' Mr Archer, will you put e?"

She followed the Marchioness into the hall, saw her fitted into a miscellaneous heap of overshoes, shawls and tippets, and called froe is to be back for -roo by theherself in the mirror It was not usual, in New York society, for a lady to address her parlour-maid as "my dear one," and send her out on an errand wrapped in her own opera-cloak; and Archer, through all his deeper feelings, tasted the pleasurable excite in a world where action followed on emotion with such Olympian speed