her."

"Ah! And did you go in?"

"No, she said it was too late to ask me; though she remarked that in a
general way she did not stand upon ceremony."

"She did herself injustice. When it came to losing your money for you,
she made you insist."

"Ah, you noticed that too?" cried Pickering, still quite unconfused. "I
felt as if the whole table were staring at me; but her manner was so
gracious and reassuring that I supposed she was doing nothing unusual.
She confessed, however, afterwards, that she is very eccentric. The
world began to call her so, she said, before she ever dreamed of it, and
at last finding that she had the reputation, in spite of herself, she
resolved to enjoy its privileges. Now, she does what she chooses."

"In other words, she is a lady with no reputation to lose!"

Pickering seemed puzzled; he smiled a little. "Is not that what you say
of bad women?"

"Of some--of those who are found out."

"Well," he said, still smiling, "I have not yet found out Madame
Blumenthal."

"If that's her name, I suppose she's German."