“Arenta!  I have no idea what you mean.  I have not seen Rem, nor written to Rem, for more than two years.”

“Very likely, but you have written about him.  You wrote to Miss Darner, and told her Rem purposely kept a letter, which you had sent to Lord Hyde,”

“I did not write to Miss Damer.  I do not know the lady.  But Rem did keep a letter that belonged to Lord Hyde.”

Then anger gave falsehood the bit and she answered, “Rem did not keep any letter that belonged to Lord Hyde.  Prove that he did so, before you accuse him.  You cannot.”

“I unfortunately directed Lord Hyde’s letter to Rem, and Rem’s letter to Lord Hyde.  Rem knew that he had Lord Hyde’s letter, and he should have taken it at once to him.”

“Lord Hyde had Rem’s letter; he ought to have taken it at once to Rem.”

“There was not a word in Rem’s letter to identify it as belonging to him.”

“Then you ought to be ashamed to write love letters that would do for any man that received them.  A poor hand you must be, to blunder over two love letters.  I have had eight, and ten, at once to answer, and I never failed to distinguish each; and while rivers run into the sea I never shall misdirect my love letters.  I do not believe Rem ever got your letter, and I will not believe it, either now or ever.  I dare be bound, Balthazar lost it on the way.  Prove to me he did not.”

“Oh, indeed!  I think you know better.”

“Very clever is Lord Hyde to excuse himself by throwing the blame on poor Rein.  Very mean indeed to accuse him to the girl he was going to marry.  To be sure, any one with an ounce of common sense to guide them, must see through the whole affair.”

“Arenta, I have the most firm conviction of Rem’s guilt, and the greatest concern for his disappointment.  I assure you I have.”

“Kindly reserve your concern, Miss Moran, till Rem Van Ariens asks for it.  As for his guilt, there is no guilt in question.  Even supposing that Rem did keep Lord Hyde’s letter, what then?  All things are fair in love and war, Willie Nicholls told me last night, he would keep a hundred letters, if he thought he could win me by doing so.  Any man of sense would.”

“All I blame Rem for is—­”

“All I blame Rem for is, that he asked you to marry him.  So much for that!  I hope if he meddles with women again, he will seek an all-round common-sense Dutch girl, who will know how to direct her letters—­or else be content with one lover.”

“Arenta, I shall go now.  I have given you an opportunity to be rude and unkind.  You cannot expect me to do that again.”

She watched Cornelia across the street, and then turned to the mirror, and wound her ringlets over her fingers.  “I don’t care,” she muttered.  “It was her fault to begin with.  She tempted Rem, and he fell.  Men always fall when women tempt them; it is their nature to.  I am going to stand by Rem, right or wrong, and I only wish I could tell Mary Damer what I think of her.  She has another lover, of course she has—­or she would not have talked about her ‘honour’ to Rem.”