"You seem very busy, Lady Chaloner," he said, as he looked at the sheets of paper on the table by her.
"We are gettin' up a bazaar," Lady Chaloner said. "Will you help us?"
"I shall be delighted," said Pateley obviously. "What do you want me to do?"
"Give us your autograph," said the Princess promptly, "and we will sell it for large sums of gold."
She had certainly chosen a skilful way of enlisting Pateley's co-operation. He revelled in the joy of being a political potentate, and every fresh proof that he received of the fact was another delight to him.
"I shall be greatly honoured," he said.
"We are going to have autographs of all the distinguished people we can find," said the Princess, continuing her system of ingratiation.
"I can tell you of an autograph who has just arrived," said Pateley. "I have just seen him driving up from the station; a very expensive autograph indeed—Lord Stamfordham."
"Lord Stamfordham?" said Lady Chaloner, the Foreign Secretary, like the rest of the world, falling instantly into his place in her kaleidescope. "Certainly, if he would give us a dozen autographs we should do an excellent business with them."