With all these facts marshalled and flashing through my brain much more rapidly than I can tell them, like the quick succession of pictures in the cinematograph, I made up my mind to become Goward’s friend in so far as circumstances would permit.  With Aunt Elizabeth out of the way it seemed to me that we would find all plain sailing again, but how to get rid other was the awful question.  Poor Peggy could hardly be happy with such a Richmond in the field, and nothing short of Elizabeth’s engagement to some other man would help matters any.  She had been too long unmarried, anyhow.  Maiden aunthood is an unhappy estate, and grows worse with habit.  If I could only find Lyman Wilde and bring him back to her, or, perhaps, Dr. Denbigh—­that was the more immediate resource, and surely no sacrifice should be too great for a family physician to make for the welfare of his patients.  Maria and I would invite Dr. Denbigh to dinner and have Aunt Elizabeth as the only other guest.  We could leave them alone on some pretext or other after dinner, and leave the rest to fate—­aided and abetted by Elizabeth herself.

Meanwhile there was Goward still on my hands.

“Well, my boy,” I said, patting him kindly on the shoulder, “I hardly know what to say to you about this thing.  You’ve got yourself in the dickens of a box, but I don’t mind telling you I think your heart is in the right place, and, whatever has happened, I don’t believe you have intentionally done wrong.  Maybe at your age you do not realize that it is not safe to be engaged to two people at the same time, especially when they belong to the same family.  Scientific heart-breakers, as a rule, take care that their fiancees are not only not related, but live in different sections of the country, and as I have no liking for preaching I shall not dwell further upon the subject.”

“I think I realize my position keenly enough without putting you to the trouble,” said Goward, gazing gloomily out of the window.

“What I will say, however,” said I, “is that I’ll do all I can to help you out of your trouble.  As one son-in-law to another, eh?”

“You are very kind,” said he, gripping me by the hand.

“I will go to Mrs. Talbert—­she is the best one to talk to—­first, and tell her just what you have told me, and it is just possible that she can explain it to Peggy,” I went on.

“I—­I think I could do that myself if I only had the chance,” he said, ruefully.

“Well, then—­I’ll try to make the chance.  I won’t promise that I will make it, because I can’t answer for anybody but myself.  Some day you will find out that women are peculiar.  But what I can do I will,” said I.  “And, furthermore, as the general attorney for the family I will cross-examine Aunt Elizabeth—­put her through the third degree, as it were, and try to show her how foolish it is for her to make so serious a matter of a trifling flirtation.”

“I wouldn’t, if I were you,” said Goward, with a frown.  “She needn’t be involved in the affair any more than she already is.  She is not in the least to blame.”