The Argosy — page 114: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

102 A Secret of the Sea. being penniless : it keeps the circle of one’s friends and acquaintances so limited and select.” “To begin with—my cousin Matthew must lend you fifty pounds.” “Fifty pounds! I like the first item of yaur programme vastly.”’ ‘The first necessity in your case is that you should have the dress and appearance of a gentleman.” | “TI quite agree with you, Miss Deane. We owe much to our tailor—in the way of gratitude.” ‘I have said nothing to you respecting your friends and connections. I have assumed all along that you would be able to satisfy Sir Thomas on those points, should he ever choose to question you respecting them—which I don’t for one moment think that he will do.” “On the points you speak of, I do not doubt that I could satisfy either Sir Thomas Dudgeon or anyone else.” ‘Such being the case, and with the manners, dress, and appearance of a gentleman, it seems to me that you would have the campaign almost entirely in your own hands. You would be under the same roof with Miss Lloyd—an inestimable advantage in your case. You would | be in the habit of seeing her daily, and might make yourself agreeable to her in many ways. Under such circumstances, where would be the harm if, now and then, you were to hint vaguely at your expectations— at your rich relations—at your fashionable friends? Neither would you altogether omit an occasional mention of your undergraduate days at Cambridge, nor of your travels abroad.” “My dear Miss Deane, you might safely leave all the delicate little details, all the nuances of the picture, to me.” “IT am quite sure of that. Miss Lloyd is nothing but a simple, country-bred girl: you are a man of the world. Voila tout.” Gerald rose. ‘‘T may just mention this,” said Olive: ‘‘ Miss Lloyd being over age, sne is entirely her own mistress, and can give her hand, and her twenty thousand pounds with it, to the man she likes best, and no one has the right or power to say her nay.” “Kelvin himself could not have stated the case more clearly “You will let me hear from you, Mr. Pomeroy, by to-morrow morn- ing at the latest ?” “ There will be no need for you to wait till to-morrow morning, Miss Deane.” ‘Does that mean that you have made up your mind. already?” “It does.” ‘‘ And the answer is Pp” “The answer 1s, that if Matthew Kelvin can obtain this situation for me, I will gladly accept it. To tell the truth, I am somewhat tired of the nomadic sort of life that I have been leading since I was quite a lad. I think I am sufficiently tamed to settle quietly down to work— ECOMRRIC OOO Ss (GO)