"There was John Rohlfs," said Mr. Carteret; "he was a very well known chap."

   "Do you know him?" asked Mrs. Brawle.

   The Curate sniggered. His hour of triumph had come. "Rohlfs is dead," he said.

   "Really!" said Mrs. Brawle, coldly. "It had quite slipped my mind. You see I never read the papers during the hunting. But is his wife received?"

   "I believe that she was," said Mr. Carteret.

   The Curate was still sniggering and Mrs. Brawle put her glass in her eye and looked at him. Then she turned to Mr. Carteret. "But all this," she said, "of course, has nothing to do with the question. Do you think that these red Indians could ride bareback across our country?"

   "As I said before," replied Mr. Carteret, "it would be silly of me to express an opinion, but I should be interested in seeing them try it."

   "I have a topping idea!" cried Lord Frederic. He was a simple-minded fellow.

   "You must tell us," exclaimed Mrs. Ascott-Smith.

   "Let us have them down, and take them hunting!"

   "How exciting!" exclaimed Mrs. Ascott-Smith. "What sport!"

   The Major looked at her reprovingly. "It would be as I said," he observed.

   "But it would be rather interesting," said Mrs. Brawle.

   "It might," said the Major, "it might be interesting."

   "It would be ripping!" said Lord Frederic. "But how can we manage it?"

   "I'll mount them," said the Major with a grim smile. "My word! They shall have the pick of my stable though I have to spend a month rebreaking horses that have run away."

   "But it isn't the mounts," said Lord Frederic. "You see I've never met any of these chaps." He turned to Mr. Carteret with a sudden inspiration. "Are any of them friends of yours?" he asked.

   Mrs. Ascott-Smith looked anxiously at Mr. Carteret, as if she feared that it would develop that some of the 

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