Mr.Montgomery Arbuthnot was especially proud of his name, but was otherwise rather a humble young man as an attache, having as yet been only three months with Sir Magnus, and desirous of perfecting himself in Foreign Office manners under the tuition of Mr.Anderson.

Mr.Blow, Secretary of Legation, was not there.
He was a married man of austere manners, who, to tell the truth, looked down from a considerable height, as regarded Foreign Office knowledge, upon his chief.
It was Mr.Blow who did the "grinding" on behalf of the Belgian Legation, and who sometimes did not hesitate to let it be known that such was the fact.

Neither he nor Mrs.Blow was popular at the Embassy; or it may, perhaps, be said with more truth that the Embassy was not popular with Mr.and Mrs.Blow.It may be stated, also, that there was a clerk attached to the establishment, Mr.Bunderdown, who had been there for some years, and who was good-naturedly regarded by the English inhabitants as a third attache.

Mr.Montgomery Arbuthnot did his best to let it be understood that this was a mistake.

In the small affairs of the legation, which no doubt did not go beyond the legation, Mr.
Bunderdown generally sided with Mr.Blow.