第3章

"Morethantwomiles,"saidAgatha。"Weshouldbedrowned。"

"Thereisnothingforitbuttowaithereunderthetrees,"saidMissWilson。

"Thebranchesareverybare,"saidGertrudeanxiously。"Ifitshouldcomedownheavilytheywilldripworsethantherainitself。"

"Muchworse,"saidAgatha。"Ithinkwehadbettergetundertheverandaoftheoldchalet。Itisnothalfaminute\'swalkfromhere。"

"Butwehavenoright——"Heretheskydarkenedthreateningly。

MissWilsoncheckedherselfandsaid,"Isupposeitisstillempty。"

"Ofcourse,"repliedAgatha,impatienttobemoving。"Itisalmostaruin。"

"Thenletusgothere,byallmeans,"saidMissWilson,notdisposedtostandontriflesattheriskofabadcold。

Theyhurriedon,andcamepresentlytoagreenhillbythewayside。OntheslopewasadilapidatedSwisscottage,surroundedbyaverandaonslenderwoodenpillars,aboutwhichclungafewtendrilsofwitheredcreeper,theirstrayendsstillswingingfromtherecentwind,nowmomentarilyhushedasiflisteningforthecomingoftherain。Accessfromtheroadwaywasbyaroughwoodengateinthehedge。TothesurpriseofAgatha,whohadlastseenthisgateoffitshingesandonlyattachedtothepostbyarustychainandpadlock,itwasnowrehungandfastenedbyanewhasp。Theweatheradmittingofnodelaytoconsidertheserepairs,sheopenedthegateandhasteneduptheslope,followedbythetroopofgirls。Theirascentendedwitharush,fortherainsuddenlycamedownintorrents。

Whentheyweresafeundertheveranda,panting,laughing,grumbling,orcongratulatingthemselvesonhavingbeensoclosetoaplaceofshelter,MissWilsonobserved,withsomeuneasiness,aspade——new,likethehaspofthegate——stickinguprightinapatchofgroundthatsomeonehadevidentlybeendigginglately。Shewasabouttocommentonthissignofhabitation,whenthedoorofthechaletwasflungopen,andJanescreamedasamandartedouttothespade,whichhewasabouttocarryinoutofthewet,whenheperceivedthecompanyundertheveranda,andstoodstillinamazement。Hewasayounglaborerwithareddish—brownbeardofaweek\'sgrowth。Heworecorduroytrousersandalinen—sleevedcorduroyvest;both,likethehaspandspade,new。Acoarseblueshirt,withavulgarred—and—orangeneckerchief,alsonew,completedhisdress;and,toshieldhimselffromtherain,heheldupasilkumbrellawithasilver—mountedebonyhandle,whichheseemedunlikelytohavecomebyhonestly。MissWilsonfeltlikeaboycaughtrobbinganorchard,butsheputaboldfaceonthematterandsaid:

"Willyouallowustotakeshelterhereuntiltherainisover？"

"Forcertain,yourladyship,"hereplied,respectfullyapplyingthespadehandletohishair,whichwascombeddowntohiseyebrows。"Yourladyshipdoesmeproudtotakerefugefromtheonclemencyoftheyallovrmentsbeneathmy\'umblerooftree。"Hisaccentwasbarbarous;andhe,likealowcomedian,seemedtorelishitsvulgarity。Ashespokehecameinamongthemforshelter,andproppedhisspadeagainstthewallofthechalet,kickingthesoilfromhishobnailedblucherboots,whichwerenew。

"Icameout,honoredlady,"heresumed,muchathisease,"tohousemyspade,wherebyIearnmyliving。Whatthepenistothepoet,suchisthespadetotheworkingman。"Hetookthekerchieffromhisneck,wipedhistemplesasifthesweatofhonesttoilwerethere,andcalmlytieditonagain。

"Ifyou\'ll\'scusearemarkfromacommonman,"heobserved,"yourladyshiphasafinefamilyofdaughters。"

"Theyarenotmydaughters,"saidMissWilson,rathershortly。

"Sisters,mebbe？"

"No。"

"Ithoughttheymoutbe,acauseIhaveasistermyself。NotthatIwouldmakeboldfortodrorcomparisons,eveninmyownmind,forshe\'sonlyacommonwoman——ascommonaoneaseveryousee。

Butfewwomenriseabovethecommon。LastSunday,inyonvillagechurch,Iheardtheministerreadoutthatonemaninathousandhadhefound,\'butonewomaninallthese,\'hesays,\'haveInotfound,\'andIthinkstomyself,\'Rightyouare！\'ButIwarranthenevermetyourladyship。"

Alaugh,thinlydisguisedasacough,escapedfromMissCarpenter。

"Youngladya—ketchin\'cold,I\'mafeerd,"hesaid,withrespectfulsolicitude。

"Doyouthinktherainwilllastlong？"saidAgathapolitely。

Themanexaminedtheskywithaweather—wiseairforsomemoments。ThenheturnedtoAgatha,andrepliedhumbly:"TheLordonlyknows,Miss。Itisnotforacommonmanlikemetosay。"

Silenceensued,duringwhichAgatha,furtivelyscrutinizingthetenantofthechalet,noticedthathisfaceandneckwerecleanerandlesssunburntthanthoseoftheordinarytoilersofLyvern。

Hishandswerehiddenbylargegardeningglovesstainedwithcoaldust。Lyvernlaborers,asarule,hadlittleobjectiontosoiltheirhands;theyneverworegloves。Still,shethought,therewasnoreasonwhyaneccentricworkman,insufferablytalkative,andcapableofanallusiontothepenofthepoet,shouldnotindulgehimselfwithcheapgloves。Butthenthesilk,silvermountedumbrella——

"Theyounglady\'shi,"hesaidsuddenly,holdingouttheumbrella,"isfixedonthishere。Iamwellawarethatitisnotforthelowestofthelowtocarryagentleman\'sbrolly,andI

askyourladyship\'spardonfortheliberty。Icomebyitaccidental—like,andshouldbegladofareasonableofferfromanygentlemaninwantofahonestarticle。"

Ashespoketwogentlemen,muchinwantofthearticle,astheirclingingwetcoatsshowed,ranthroughthegatewayandmadeforthechalet。Fairholmearrivedfirst,exclaiming:"Fearfulshower！"andbrisklyturnedhisbacktotheladiesinordertostandattheedgeoftheverandaandshakethewateroutofhishat。Josephscamenext,shrinkingfromthedampcontactofhisowngarments。HecringedtoMissWilson,andhopedthatshehadescapedawetting。

"SofarIhave,"shereplied。"Thequestionis,howarewetogethome？"

"Oh,it\'sonlyashower,"saidJosephs,lookingupcheerfullyattheunbrokencurtainofcloud。"Itwillclearuppresently。"

"Itain\'tforacommonmantosetuphisopinionagain\'agentlemanwothaveprofesh\'nalknowledgeoftheheavens,asonemaysay,"saidtheman,"butIwould\'umblyoffertobetmyumbrellartohiswideawakethatitdon\'tceaserainingthissideofseveno\'clock。"

"Thatmanliveshere,"whisperedMissWilson,"andIsupposehewantstogetridofus。"

"H\'m！"saidFairholme。Then,turningtothestrangelaborerwiththeairofapersonnottobetrifledwith,heraisedhisvoice,andsaid:"Youlivehere,doyou,myman？"

"Ido,sir,byyourgoodleave,ifImaymakesobold。"

"What\'syourname？"

"JeffSmilash,sir,atyourservice。"

"Wheredoyoucomefrom？"

"Brixtonbury,sir。"

"Brixtonbury！Where\'sthat？"

"Well,sir,Idon\'trightlyknow。Ifagentlemanlikeyou,knowingjographyandsuch,can\'ttell,howcanI？"

"Yououghttoknowwhereyouwereborn,man。Haven\'tyougotcommonsense？"

"Wherecouldsuchaoneasmegetcommonsense,sir？Besides,I

wasonlyafoundling。MebbeIwarn\'sbornatall。"

"DidIseeyouatchurchlastSunday？"

"No,sir。Ionlycomeo\'Wensday。"

"Well,letmeseeyoutherenextSunday,"saidFairholmeshortly,turningawayfromhim。

MissWilsonlookedattheweather,atJosephs,whowasconversingwithJane,andfinallyatSmilash,whoknuckledhisforeheadwithoutwaitingtobeaddressed。

"HaveyouaboywhomyoucansendtoLyverntogetusaconveyance——acarriage？Iwillgivehimashillingforhistrouble。"

"Ashilling！"saidSmilashjoyfully。"Yourladyshipisanoblelady。Twofour—wheeledcabs。There\'seightonyou。"

"ThereisonlyonecabinLyvern,"saidMissWilson。"TakethiscardtoMr。Marsh,thejotmaster,andtellhimthepredicamentwearein。Hewillsendvehicles。"

Smilashtookthecardandreaditataglance。Hethenwentintothechalet。Reappearingpresentlyinasou\'westerandoilskins,heranoffthroughtherainandvaultedoverthegatewithridiculouselegance。Nosoonerhadhevanishedthan,asoftenhappenstoremarkablemen,hebecamethesubjectofconversation。

"Adecentworkman,"saidJosephs。"Awell—manneredman,consideringhisclass。"

"Abornfool,though,"saidFairholme。

"Orarogue,"saidAgatha,emphasizingthesuggestionbyaglitterofhereyesandteeth,whilstherschoolfellows,ratherdisapprovingofherfreedom,stoodstifflydumb。"HetoldMissWilsonthathehadasister,andthathehadbeentochurchlastSunday,andhehasjusttoldyouthatheisafoundling,andthatheonlycamelastWednesday。Hisaccentisputon,andhecanread,andIdon\'tbelieveheisaworkmanatall。Perhapsheisaburglar,comedowntostealthecollegeplate。"

"Agatha,"saidMissWilsongravely,"youmustbeverycarefulhowyousaythingsofthatkind。"

"Butitissoobvious。Hisexplanationabouttheumbrellawasmadeuptodisarmsuspicion。Hehandleditandleanedonitinawaythatshowedhowmuchmorefamiliaritwastohimthanthatnewspadehewassoanxiousabout。Andallhisclothesarenew。"

"True,"saidFairholme,"butthereisnotmuchinallthat。

Workmennowadaysapegentlemenineverything。However,Iwillkeepaneyeonhim。"

"Oh,thankyousomuch,"saidAgatha。Fairholme,suspectingmockery,frowned,andMissWilsonlookedseverelyatthemocker。

Littlemorewassaid,exceptastothechances——manifestlysmall——oftherainceasing,untilthetopsofacab,adecayedmourningcoach,andthreedrippinghatswereseenoverthehedge。

Smilashsatontheboxofthecoach,besidethedriver。Whenitstopped,healighted,re—enteredthechaletwithoutspeaking,cameoutwiththeumbrella,spreaditaboveMissWilson\'shead,andsaid:

"Now,ifyourladyshipwillcomewithme,Iwillseeyoudryintothestray,andthenI\'llbringyourhonoredniecesonebyone。"

"Ishallcomelast,"saidMissWilson,irritatedbyhisassumptionthatthepartywasafamilyone。"Gertrude,youhadbettergofirst。"

"Allowme,"saidFairholme,steppingforward,andattemptingtotaketheumbrella。

"Thankyou,Ishallnottroubleyou,"shesaidfrostily,andtrippedawayovertheoozingfieldwithSmilash,whoheldtheumbrellaoverherwithostentatioussolicitude。Inthesamemannerheledtheresttothevehicles,inwhichtheypackedthemselveswithsomedifficulty。Agatha,whocamelastbutone,gavehimthreepence。

"Youhaveanoble\'artandanexpressivehi,Miss,"hesaid,apparentlymuchmoved。"Blessingsonboth！Blessingsonboth！"

HewentbackforJane,whoslippedonthewetgrassandfell。Hehadtoputforthhisstrengthashehelpedhertorise。"Hopeyouain\'tsoppedupmuchoftherainfall,Miss,"hesaid。"Youareafineyoungladyforyourage。Nighontwelvestone,Ishouldthink。"

Shereddenedandhurriedtothecab,whereAgathawas。Butitwasfull;andJane,muchagainstherwill,hadtogetintothecoach,considerablydiminishingthespaceleftforMissWilson,towhomSmilashhadreturned。

"Now,dearlady,"hesaid,"takecareyoudon\'tslip。Comealong。"

MissWilson,ignoringtheinvitation,tookashillingfromherpurse。

"No,lady,"saidSmilashwithavirtuousair。"Iamanhonestmanandhaveneverseentheinsideofajailexceptfourtimes,andonlytwiceforstealing。Youryoungestdaughter——herwiththeexpressivehi——havepaidmefarbeyondwhatisproper。"

"Ihavetoldyouthattheseyoungladiesarenotmydaughters,"

saidMissWilsonsharply。"Whydoyounotlistentowhatissaidtoyou？"

"Don\'tbetoohardonacommonman,lady,"saidSmilashsubmissively。"Theyoungladyhavejustgivenmethree\'arf—crowns。"

"Threehalf—crowns！"exclaimedMissWilson,angeredatsuchextravagance。

"Blessherinnocence,shedon\'tknowwhatispropertogivetoalowsortlikeme！ButIwillnotrobtheyounglady。\'Arf—a—crownisnomorenorisfairforthejob,andarf—a—crownwillIkeep,ifagreeabletoyournobleladyship。ButIgiveyoubackthefivebobintrustforher。Haveyouevernoticedherexpressivehi？"

"Nonsense,sir。Youhadbetterkeepthemoneynowthatyouhavegotit。"

"Wot！Sellforfivebobthehighopinionyourladyshiphasofme！

No,dearlady;notlikely。Myfather\'sverylastwordstomewas——"

"Yousaidjustnowthatyouwereafoundling,"saidFairholme。

"Whatarewetobelieve？Eh？"

"SoIwere,sir;butbymother\'ssidealone。Herladyshipwillpleasetotakebackthemoney,forkeepitIwillnot。Iamofthelowerorders,andthereforenotamanofmyword;butwhenI

dosticktoit,Isticklikewax。"

"Takeit,"saidFairholmetoMissWilson。"Takeit,ofcourse。

Sevenandsixpenceisaridiculoussumtogivehimforwhathehasdone。Itwouldonlysethimdrinking。"

"Hisreverencesaystrue,lady。Theone\'arfcrownwillkeepmecomfortablytightuntilSundaymorning;andmoreIdonotdesire。"

"Justalittlelessofyourtongue,myman,"saidFairholme,takingthetwocoinsfromhimandhandingthemtoMissWilson,whobadetheclergymengoodafternoon,andwenttothecoachundertheumbrella。

"IfyourladyshipshouldwantahandymantodoanoddjobupatthecollegeIhopeyouwillrememberme,"Smilashsaidastheywentdowntheslope。

"Oh,youknowwhoIam,doyou？"saidMissWilsondrily。

"Allthecountryknowsyou,Miss,andworshipsyou。Ihavefewequalsasacoiner,andifyoushouldrequireamedalstrucktogiveawayforgoodbehaviororthelike,IthinkIcouldstrikeonetoyoursatisfaction。Andifyourladyshipshouldwantatrifleofsmuggledlace——"

"Youhadbetterbecarefuloryouwillgetintotrouble,I

think,"saidMissWilsonsternly。"Tellhimtodriveon。"

Thevehiclesstarted,andSmilashtookthelibertyofwavinghishatafterthem。Thenhereturnedtothechalet,lefttheumbrellawithin,cameoutagain,lockedthedoor,putthekeyinhispocket,andwalkedoffthroughtherainacrossthehillwithouttakingtheleastnoticeoftheastonishedparsons。

InthemeantimeMissWilson,unabletocontainherannoyanceatAgatha\'sextravagance,spokeofittothegirlswhosharedthecoachwithher。ButJanedeclaredthatAgathaonlypossessedthreepenceintheworld,andthereforecouldnotpossiblyhavegiventhemanthirtytimesthatsum。Whentheyreachedthecollege,Agatha,confrontedwithMissWilson,openedhereyesinwonder,andexclaimed,laughing:"Ionlygavehimthreepence。Hehassentmeapresentoffourandninepence！"

CHAPTERIV

SaturdayatAltonCollege,nominallyahalfholiday,wasreallyawholeone。Classesingymnastics,dancing,elocution,anddrawingwereheldinthemorning。Theafternoonwasspentatlawntennis,towhichladyguestsresidentintheneighborhoodwereallowedtobringtheirhusbands,brothers,andfathers——MissWilsonbeinganxioustosendherpupilsforthintotheworldfreefromtheuncouthstiffnessofschoolgirlsunaccustomedtosociety。

LateinOctobercameaSaturdaywhichprovedanythingbutaholidayforMissWilson。Athalf—pastone,luncheonbeingover,shewentoutofdoorstoalawnthatlaybetweenthesouthernsideofthecollegeandashrubbery。HereshefoundagroupofgirlswatchingAgathaandJane,whoweredraggingarolleroverthegrass。Oneofthem,tossingaballaboutwithherracket,happenedtodriveitintotheshrubbery,whence,tothesurpriseofthecompany,Smilashpresentlyemerged,carryingtheball,blinking,andproclaimingthat,thoughacommonman,hehadhisfeelingslikeanother,andthathiseyewasneitherasticknorastone。Hewasdressedasbefore,buthisgarments,soiledwithclayandlime,nolongerlookednew。

"Whatbringsyouhere,pray？"demandedMissWilson。

"Iwasledintothebeliefthatyousentforme,lady,"hereplied。"Thebaker\'sladtoldmesoashepassedmy\'umblecotthismorning。Ithoughthewereincapableofdeceit。"

"Thatisquiteright;Ididsendforyou。Butwhydidyounotgoroundtotheservants\'hall？"

"Iamatpresentinsearchofit,lady。Iwerelookingforitwhenthisballcotchmehere"（touchinghiseye）。"Acruelblowonthehi\'nat\'rallyspiresitsvisionandexpressionandmakesahonestmanlooklikeathief。"

"Agatha,"saidMissWilson,"comehere。"

"Mydootytoyou,Miss,"saidSmilash,pullinghisforelock。

"ThisisthemanfromwhomIhadthefiveshillings,whichhesaidyouhadjustgivenhim。Didyoudoso？"

"Certainlynot。Ionlygavehimthreepence。"

"ButIshowedthemoneytoyourladyship,"saidSmilash,twistinghishatagitatedly。"Igevityou。Wherewouldthelikeofmegetfiveshillingsexceptbythebountyoftherichandnoble？IftheyoungladythinksIhadn\'torttohavekep\'thetother\'arfcrown,Iwouldnotobjecttoitsbein\'stoppedfrommywagesifIweregivenajobofworkhere。But——"

"Butit\'snonsense,"saidAgatha。"Inevergaveyouthreehalf—crowns。"

"Perhapsyoumout\'a\'madeamistake。Penceissummatsimilarto\'arf—crowns,andthedaywereverydark。"

"Icouldn\'thave,"saidAgatha。"Janehadmypursealltheearlierpartoftheweek,MissWilson,andshecantellyouthattherewasonlythreepenceinit。YouknowthatIgetmymoneyonthefirstofeverymonth。Itneverlastslongerthanaweek。Theideaofmyhavingsevenandsixpenceonthesixteenthisridiculous。"

"ButIputittoyou,Miss,ain\'tittwiceasridiculousforme,apoorlaborer,togiveupmoneywotInevergot？"

VaguealarmcreptuponAgathaasthetestimonyofhersenseswascontradicted。"AllIknowis,"sheprotested,"thatIdidnotgiveittoyou;somypenniesmusthaveturnedintohalf—crownsinyourpocket。"

"Mebbeso,"saidSmilashgravely。"I\'veheard,andIknowitforafact,thatmoneygrowsinthepocketsoftherich。Whynotinthepocketsofthepooraswell？Whyshouldyoubesu\'prisedatwot\'appenseveryday？"

"Hadyouanymoneyofyourownaboutyouatthetime？"

"Wherecouldthelikeofmegetmoney？——askingpardonformakingsoboldastocatechiseyourladyship。"

"Idon\'tknowwhereyoucouldgetit,"saidMissWilsontestily;

"Iaskyou,hadyouany？"

"Well,lady,Idisremember。Iwillnotimposeuponyou。I

disremember。"

"Thenyou\'vemadeamistake,"saidMissWilson,handinghimbackhismoney。"Here。Ifitisnotyours,itisnotours;soyouhadbetterkeepit。"

"Keepit！Oh,lady,butthisistheheighthofnobility！AndwhatshallIdotoearnyourbounty,lady？"

"Itisnotmybounty:Igiveittoyoubecauseitdoesnotbelongtome,and,Isuppose,mustbelongtoyou。Youseemtobeaverysimpleman。"

"Ithankyourladyship;IhopeIam。Respectingtheday\'swork,now,lady;wasyouthinkingofemployingapoormanatall？"

"No,thankyou;Ihavenooccasionforyourservices。IhavealsotogiveyoutheshillingIpromisedyouforgettingthecabs。

Hereitis。"

"Anothershillin\'！"criedSmilash,stupefied。

"Yes,"saidMissWilson,beginningtofeelveryangry。"Letmehearnomoreaboutit,please。Don\'tyouunderstandthatyouhaveearnedit？"

"Iamacommonman,andunderstandnexttonothing,"herepliedreverently。"Butifyourladyshipwouldgivemeaday\'sworktokeepmegoin\',IcouldputupallthismoneyinalittlewoodensavingsbankIhaveathome,andkeepittospendwhensicknessoroddageshall,inamannerofspeaking,laytheir\'endsuponme。Icouldsmooththatgrassbeautiful;themyoungladies\'llstrainthemselveswiththatheavyroller。Iftennisistheword,Icanputupnetsfittocatchbirdsofparadisein。Ifthecourtsistobechalkedoutinwhite,Icandrawalinesostraightthatyoucouldhardlykeepyourselffromerectinganequilateraltriangleonit。Iamhonestwhenwellwatched,andI

canwaitattableequaltotheLordMayoro\'London\'sbutler。"

"Icannotemployyouwithoutacharacter,"saidMissWilson,amusedbyhisscrapofEuclid,andwonderingwherehehadpickeditup。

"Ibearthebestofcharacters,lady。Thereverendrectorhasknownmefromaboy。"

"Iwasspeakingtohimaboutyouyesterday,"saidMissWilson,lookinghardathim,"andhesaysyouareaperfectstrangertohim。"

"Gentlemenissoforgetful,"saidSmilashsadly。"ButIalludedtomynativerector——meaningtherectorofmynativevillage,Auburn。\'SweetAuburn,loveliestvillageoftheplain,\'asthegentlemancalledit。"

"ThatwasnotthenameyoumentionedtoMr。Fairholme。Idonotrecollectwhatnameyougave,butitwasnotAuburn,norhaveI

everheardofanysuchplace。"

"NeverreadofsweetAuburn！"

"Notinanygeographyorgazetteer。Doyourecollecttellingmethatyouhavebeeninprison？"

"Onlysixtimes,"pleadedSmilash,hisfeaturesworkingconvulsively。"Don\'tbeartoohardonacommonman。Onlysixtimes,andallthroughdrink。ButIhavetookthepledge,andkep\'itfaithfulforeighteenmonthspast。"

MissWilsonnowsetdownthemanasoneofthosekeen,half—wittedcountryfellows,contemptuouslystyledoriginals,whounintentionallymakethemselvespopularbyflatteringthesenseofsanityinthosewhosefacultiesarebetteradaptedtocircumstances。

"Youhaveabadmemory,Mr。Smilash,"shesaidgood—humoredly。

"Younevergivethesameaccountofyourselftwice。"

"IamwellawarethatIdonotexpressmyselfwithexactability。

Ladiesandgentlemenhavethatpoweroverwordsthattheycanalwayssaywhattheymean,butacommonmanlikemecan\'t。Wordsdon\'tcomenaturaltohim。Hehasmorethoughtsthanwords,andwhatwordshehasdon\'tfithisthoughts。MightItakeaturnwiththeroller,andmakemyselfusefulabouttheplaceuntilnightfall,forninepence？"

MissWilson,whowasexpectingmorethanherusualSaturdayvisitors,consideredthepropositionandassented。"Andremember,"shesaid,"thatasyouareastrangerhere,yourcharacterinLyverndependsupontheuseyoumakeofthisopportunity。"

"Iamgratefultoyournobleladyship。Mayyourladyship\'sgoodnesssewuptheholewhichisinthepocketwhereIcarrymycharacter,andwhichhascausedmetoloseitsofrequent。It\'sabadplaceformentokeeptheircharactersin;butsuchisthefashion。Andsohurrayforthegloriousnineteenthcentury！"

Hetookoffhiscoat,seizedtheroller,andbegantopullitwithanenergyforeigntothemeasuredmillhorsemanneroftheaccustomedlaborer。MissWilsonlookeddoubtfullyathim,but,beinginhaste,wentindoorswithoutfurthercomment。Thegirlsmistrustinghiseccentricity,keptaloof。Agathadeterminedtohaveanotherandbetterlookathim。Racketinhand,shewalkedslowlyacrossthegrassandcameclosetohimjustashe,unawareofherapproach,utteredagroanofexhaustionandsatdowntorest。

"Tiredalready,Mr。Smilash？"shesaidmockingly。

Helookedupdeliberately,tookoffoneofhiswashleathergloves,fannedhimselfwithit,displayingawhiteandfinehand,andatlastreplied,inthetoneandwiththeaccentofagentleman:

"Very。"

Agatharecoiled。Hefannedhimselfwithouttheleastconcern。

"You——youarenotalaborer,"shesaidatlast。

"Obviouslynot。"

"Ithoughtnot。"

Henodded。

"SupposeItellonyou,"shesaid,growingbolderassherecollectedthatshewasnotalonewithhim。

"IfyoudoIshallgetoutofitjustasIgotoutofthehalf—crowns,andMissWilsonwillbegintothinkthatyouaremad。"

"ThenIreallydidnotgiveyouthesevenandsixpence,"shesaid,relieved。

"Whatisyourownopinion？"heanswered,takingthreepenniesfromhispocket,jinglingtheminhispalm。"Whatisyourname？"

"Ishallnottellyou,"saidAgathawithdignity。

Heshruggedhisshoulders。"Perhapsyouareright,"hesaid。"I

wouldnottellyoumineifyouaskedme。"

"Ihavenottheslightestintentionofaskingyou。"

"No？ThenSmilashshalldoforyou,andAgathawilldoforme。"

"Youhadbettertakecare。"

"Ofwhat？"

"Ofwhatyousay,and——areyounotafraidofbeingfoundout？"

"Iamfoundoutalready——byyou,andIamnonetheworse。"

"Supposethepolicefindyouout！"

"Notthey。Besides,Iamnothidingfromthepolice。IhavearighttowearcorduroyifIpreferittobroadcloth。Considertheadvantagesofit！IthasprocuredmeadmissiontoAltonCollege,andthepleasureofyouracquaintance。WillyouexcusemeifIgoonwithmyrolling,justtokeepupappearances？IcantalkasI

roll。"

"Youmay,ifyouarefondofsoliloquizing,"shesaid,turningawayasherose。

"Seriously,Agatha,youmustnottelltheothersaboutme。"

"DonotcallmeAgatha,"shesaidimpetuously。"WhatshallIcallyou,then？"

"Youneednotaddressmeatall。"

"Ineed,andwill。Don\'tbeill—natured。"