Miss Templeton is an heiress herself, and Morris might easily take it into his head to spend ten or fifteen thousand pounds in building a house or buying an estate, and though I think I have guarded against his requiring an account of our stewardship, I can't prevent his wishing to draw a large sum of money.

But your brilliant manoeuvre may, we hope, effectually put a stop to the danger of his marrying Miss Templeton, and since I am convinced he is in love with her, why"-- Mr.Taynton put his plump finger-tips together and raised his kind eyes to the ceiling--"why, the chance of his wanting to marry anybody else is postponed anyhow, till, till he has got over this unfortunate attachment.
In fact, my dear fellow, there is no longer anything immediate to fear, and I feel sure that before many weeks are up, the misfortunes and ill luck which for the last two years have dogged us with such incredible persistency will be repaired." Mills said nothing for the moment but splashed himself out a liberal allowance of brandy into his glass, and mixed it with a somewhat more carefully measured ration of soda.

He was essentially a sober man, but that was partly due to the fact that his head was as impervious to alcohol as teak is to water, and it was his habit to indulge in two, and those rather stiff, brandies and sodas of an evening.

He found that they assisted and clarified thought.
"I wish to heaven you hadn't found it necessary to let young Assheton know that his L30,000 had increased to L40,000," he said.

"That's L10,000 more to get back." "Ah, it was just that which gave him, so he thought, such good cause for reposing complete confidence in me," remarked Mr.Taynton.