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‘And you will go yourself?’

‘Most assuredly,’ said the Prime Minister.  ’And I hope that you will keep me in countenance.’  His political antagonist declared with a smile that at such a crisis he would not desert his honourable friend;—­but he could not answer for his followers.  There was, he admitted, a strong feeling among the leaders of the Conservative party of distrust in Melmotte.  He considered it probable that among his friends who had been invited there would be some who would be unwilling to meet even the Emperor of China on the existing terms.  ’They should remember,’ said the Prime Minister, ’that they are also to meet their own Prince, and that empty seats on such an occasion will be a dishonour to him.’

‘Just at present I can only answer for myself’ said the leader of the Opposition.—­At that moment even the Prime Minister was much disturbed in his mind; but in such emergencies a Prime Minister can only choose the least of two evils.  To have taken the Emperor to dine with a swindler would be very bad; but to desert him, and to stop the coming of the Emperor and all the Princes on a false rumour, would be worse.

CHAPTER LIX — THE DINNER

It does sometimes occur in life that an unambitious man, who is in no degree given to enterprises, who would fain be safe, is driven by the cruelty of circumstances into a position in which he must choose a side, and in which, though he has no certain guide as to which side he should choose, he is aware that he will be disgraced if he should take the wrong side.  This was felt as a hardship by many who were quite suddenly forced to make up their mind whether they would go to Melmotte’s dinner, or join themselves to the faction of those who had determined to stay away although they had accepted invitations.  Some there were not without a suspicion that the story against Melmotte had been got up simply as an electioneering trick,—­so that Mr Alf might carry the borough on the next day.  As a dodge for an election this might be very well, but any who might be deterred by such a manoeuvre from meeting the Emperor and supporting the Prince would surely be marked men.  And none of the wives, when they were consulted, seemed to care a straw whether Melmotte was a swindler or not.  Would the Emperor and the Princes and Princesses be there?  This was the only question which concerned them.  They did not care whether Melmotte was arrested at the dinner or after the dinner, so long as they, with others, could show their diamonds in the presence of eastern and western royalty.  But yet,—­what a fiasco would it be, if at this very instant of time the host should be apprehended for common forgery!  The great thing was to ascertain whether others were going.  If a hundred or more out of the two hundred were to be absent how dreadful would be the position of those who were present!  And how would the thing go if at the last moment the Emperor should be kept