The times., 1898-05-22

minutes If I'd been out here for FIVE
fortnights. what would it have matter
Cd to your"
Nothing" she said. drearily
Nothing matters to me now"
Then he observed that things We're
growing more serious He took her
two hands.
Tell me-" he said. what is it?"
She began to cry.
An hour and a half later Major Ow-
en- got out of a hanson in JeTmyn
Street He paid the man his legal fare,
added another shilling because the
man didn't grumble at it, and went up
tC his chambers. On an ordinary &C.
casion. being a middle-aged gentleman
OF some discretion he would have gone
straight to bed; this was not an ordin-
ary occasion. He changed his dress
coat for a smoking jacket, mixed him
self a brandy and soda. lit cheroot
and sat down in an easy chair. But his
mind was too disturbed for inacti0n.
He got up again, and paced the room,
circling like a planet round the little
table on which the glass sparkied like
a star under the electric light. AT
last he stood still.
i have done for myself" he said.
Freedom was at an end. His COM
ClldilDtIS, lildl carry III lnp
evening he had regarded as his per-
manent abiding place. now seemed the
unsubstantial fabric of vision; the
breath of Hymen, and they were gone.
Then came second thoughts. Had he
really done for -hinLself2 Christine
was charming; she had distinctive
ways of her own. but she was none the
less charming. She would, he consid-
cred. do him credit The money did
not happen to matter much in his case,
but he remembered vaguely that there
was money. What seemed much more
important was that she looked very
pretty when she cried. A few hours
before he had never dreamed of marry
ing, certainly not marrying a girl like
Christine. As it was, he had proposed
to herr for reasons that he was totally
unable to analyZe, and he must go on
with it,
Half an hours further reflection hav-
( ing still shown him that he must go on
with it. he finished his drink, switched
off the light and went to bed, and the
next morning, having dressed himself
with great care, and grumbied pro-
fusely at his very excellent valet, he
called on Miss Blake, in Bryanston
Square. Now Miss Blake was the sis
ter of Christfne's father, Col. Blake,
and Christine's guardian.
The engagement was to be short.
The drudgery of it began at once He
had to go to many places where he
had never been before, and did not
want to go again. He waited, a per-
fectly CHASTITY figure, in the shops of
fashionable milliners, feeling that ev-
cry lady customer who entered re-
garded him as an insult and an out
rage. He had to sit through concerts:
they We're very good concerts, and
very good concert was, from the mai
cr's point Of view, the very worst sort
of concert. An ordinary tune. as he
sometimes observed, he could more or
less understand. He was made to dance
frequently, and in the small hours of
the morning, when respectable, mid
dle-aged gentlemen should be in their
beds. 1t was all very trying. but grad
ually it dawned on him that there was
one or two compensations. Christine
certainly behaved very nicely to him.
He bought her ring diamond and
sapphires), and her reception Of it gave
him great pleasure. He repeated this
pleasure by buying her other things
After a fortnight he owned to him
self that things might have been
worse
But he didn't fail in love with Chris
tine definitely until she fell ILL., Then
the major went temporarily mad. He
became source of wonder and panied