CHAPTER XXX.
A SCOLDING.
The Evening Star found herself a success--that is, much followed by the men and much complimented by the women.

Her triumph, however, did not culminate until the next appearance of "The Firefly," containing a song "To the Evening Star," which _everybody_ knew to stand for Mrs.
Redmain.

The chaos of the uninitiated, indeed, exoteric and despicable, remained in ignorance, nor dreamed that the verses meant anybody of note; to them they seemed but the calf-sigh of some young writer so deep in his first devotion that he jumbled up his lady-love, Hesper, and Aphrodite, in the same poetic bundle--of which he left the string-ends hanging a little loose, while, upon the whole, it remained a not altogether unsightly bit of prentice-work.

Tom had not been at the party, but had gathered fire enough from what he heard of Hesper's appearance there to write the verses.

Here they are, as nearly as I can recall them.