But she must tell Florence what had been done, and tell her on that very day of her meeting with Lady Ongar.  In no other way could she stop that letter which she knew that Florence would have already written to Mrs. Clavering.  And could she now tell Florence that there was ground for hope?  Was it not the fact that Lady Ongar had spoken the simple and plain truth when she had said that Harry must be allowed to choose the course which appeared to him to be the best for him?  It was hard, very hard, that it should be so.  And was it not true also that men, as well as gods, excuse the perjuries of lovers?  She wanted to have back Harry among them as one to be forgiven easily, to be petted much, and to be loved always; but, in spite of the softness of her woman’s nature, she wished that he might be punished sorely if he did not so return.  It was grievous to her that he should any longer have a choice in the matter.  Heavens and earth! was he to be allowed to treat a woman as he had treated Florence, and was nothing to come of it?  In spite both of gods and men, the thing was so grievous to Cecilia Burton that she could not bring herself to acknowledge that it was possible.  Such things had not been done in the world which she had known.

She walked the whole way home to Brompton, and had hardly perfected any plan when she reached her own door.  If only Florence would allow her to write the letter to Mrs. Clavering, perhaps something might be done in that way.  So she entered the house prepared to tell the story of her morning’s work.

And she must tell it also to her husband in the evening!  It had been hard to do the thing without his knowing of it beforehand, but it would be impossible to her to keep the thing a secret from him now that it was done.

Chapter XLV

How To Dispose Of A Wife

When Sir Hugh came up to town there did not remain to him quite a week before the day on which he was to leave the coast of Essex in Jack Stuart’s yacht for Norway, and he had a good deal to do in the mean time in the way of provisioning the boat.  Fortnum and Mason, no doubt, would have done it all for him without any trouble on his part, but he was not a man to trust any Fortnum or any Mason as to the excellence of the article to be supplied, or as to the price.  He desired to have good wine—­very good wine, but he did not desire to pay a very high price.  No one knew better than Sir Hugh that good wine can not be bought cheap; but things may be costly and yet not dear, or they may be both.  To such matters Sir Hugh was wont to pay very close attention himself.  He had done something in that line before he left London, and immediately on his return he went to the work again, summoning Archie to his assistance, but never asking Archie’s opinion—­as though Archie had been his head butler.

Immediately on his arrival in London he cross-questioned his brother as to his marriage prospects.  “I suppose you are going with us?” Hugh said to Archie, as he caught him in the hall of the house in Berkeley Square on the morning after his arrival.