The Washington herald., 1908-07-02
CHAPTER w.

Outside. he looked at his watch II
was past :. Suddenly he made the dis
! covery that he was hungry; he remem-
bered that he had eaten no lunch, no tea,
and practically no breakfast. The mere
/ physical craving for food cleared his
mind. To eat would be something definite
TO do. The difficulty presented itself of
| selecting a restaurant. He never dined
at home; the clubs were out of the ques-
ton; the well-known restaurants equally
So Then he recalled the name Of popu-
i lar place OF entertainment in Piccadnly,
where he would be as safe and as much
alone as in an oasis of the Great Sahara.
A hanson took him there in five minutes.
Cshered into a finely proportioned mar
bic hall filed with happy diners. not a
vacant table could he see, and but few
empty chairs. A steward explained that
one chair was all that could be expected :
no patron monopolized a whole table.
! Guy, acquescing, found himself opposite
a pleasant-faced felldw Of about his own
age. who nodded and pushed across a
huge bill-of-fare. Guy ordered his dinner.
and looked up, 70 find a pair Of clear,
brown eyes regarding him curiously.
Stranger here?"
Yes said Guy not quite easy Won
dering whether he had been recognized.
We don't often see your sort. sir but
now and again; and always wonder how
II strikes 'em. The foods all right. and
the attendance, and the room. and the
music; but there's a difference next door.
eh?"
In the bill" said Guy. smiling.
In the crowd"
Guy looked at the crowd; workers 70 a
man. Nobody was in evening dress. ex-
cept the walters. who wore mustacbes
and spoke in cultural accents A nap
kin was alluded 10 as a "serviette" An
air Of extreme respectability pervaded the
room. Guy noted these trines almost me
ehanically, but the faces OF the men and
women challenged a sentiment deeper than
mere curiosity They were coarse-fea-
tured; noses, chins especially chins)
ears. and eyebrows stuck out aggressive
ly. The hands busy conveying food with
extraordinary swiftness 70 the mouths
were badly modelled. but capable. as II
they belonged, as indeed they did. 10
Snatches OF talk fell upon Guys ears
business talk an unknown tongue 10 him
the idler and wastrel The women. par
ticularly the girls, affected certain harm
less airs and graces. culled possibly from
some manual OF table etiquette. They
called each other dear" said please"
very frequently, and paid particular at
tentiOn 10 the letter "h" obviously Terri
fed lest It should drop onto the foor and
be never recovered.
Watching the crowd. Guy was sensible
that he IN turn was being watched.
Hungry lot amt they?" remarked the
young man. as the waiter brought souD
We'll. they come here because they're
hungry"
Not because they're greedy"
we eat 20 live. But the food IS good.
the best in London at the price. That's
why the place is fuE. And II ye'' come
Onco.tnfi Gonna again ~
Guy reflected that this fellow meant TO
talk- And he had such a nice pair OF
eyes that one couldn't with any decencv
Snub him. Also. he seemed intelligent.
an observer IN his way, possibly a bit OF
a thinker Guy wondered what he did
for a living. and hazarded a mental
guess. Was he clerk stenographer. iour-
nalist, or tradesmen? From an infection
in his voice, which denoted a sense OF
independence. Guy made certain that he
padded his own canoe. He asked a
question:
DO you dine here often2''
Always. when I'm in town. I travel
for a big house"
So he was a hagnan; hence the gift Of
gab and the slightly cock-a-whoop but
not offensive air Of assurance. The
waiter brought some fish. Guy was help
ing himself. when the other said alb
ruptly;