He must now placate
Natalie. The child must be quickly removed from Paris. He dare not
give a reason. No, but he can use a bribe.
After several futile attempts he pens this cipher:
Remove child instantly to Dresden. Telegraph your address on
arrival. Definite settlement as you wished. Remember your promise.
Directions by mail. Imperative.
PHILIP.
Hardin chafes anxiously before a reply reaches him. When he reads
it, he rages like a fiend. It clearly reads:
I will not obey. Marry me first. Come here. Keep your oath. I will
keep my promise. A settlement on the other child is no safeguard
to me. She must have a name. Letters final. Useless to telegraph.
HORTENSE.
When Hardin's rage subsides, he reviews the situation in his
palace. He is safe for years from an accounting, yet it is coming
on. If he brings the heiress to California, it will precipitate it.
Secret plans for the Senate of the United States are now maturing.
Marriage with Hortense. Impossible. His friends urge his giving
his name to an ambitious lady of the "blue blood" of his Southern
home. She is a relative of the head of the Democratic capitalists.
This is a "sine qua non." The lady has claims on these honors.
It has been a secret bargain to give his hand in return for that
seat.
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