II
The Earl of Windermere wrote to the Rev. Arthur Stayne, M.A., vicar of St. Magnus, Brockley—
"I have just heard that your unfortunate parish is to be inflicted with young de Montvillier. What process of reasoning led him to fix upon Brockley I cannot, dare not, fathom. You may be sure that this freak of his has some devilishly subtle cause—don't let him worry your good parishioners. He was at Eton with my boy Jim. I met him cow punching in Texas a few years ago when I was visiting the States, and he was of some service to me. He belongs to one of the oldest families in France, but his people were chucked out at the time of the Revolution. He is as good as gold, as plucky as they make 'em, and, thanks to his father (the only one of the family to settle anywhere for long), thoroughly Anglicized in sympathies and in language. He is quite 'the compleat philosopher,' flippant, audacious and casual. His pal Hank, who is with him, is George Hankey, the man who discovered silver in Los Madeges. Both of them have made and lost fortunes, but I believe they have come back to England with something like a competence. Call on them. They will probably be very casual with you, but they are both worth cultivating."
The Rev. Arthur Stayne called and was admitted into the barely-furnished hall by the deferential man-servant.
"His grace will see you in the common-room," he said, and ushered the clergyman into the back parlour.
The Duke rose with a smile, and came toward him with outstretched hand.
Hank got up from his lounge chair, and waved away the cloud of smoke that hovered about his head.
"Glad to see you, sir," said the Duke, with a note of respect in his voice, "this is Mr. Hankey."
The vicar, on his guard against a possibility of brusqueness, returned Hank's friendly grin with relief.
"I've had a letter from Windermere," he explained. The Duke looked puzzled for a moment and he turned to his companion.