"No, you do not believe it. You know that had Philip II succeeded there would be no England to-day such as we know. Well, now it comes to this: A greater and a more terrible power than Spain seeks to crush us; but our men, thank God, have not ceased to be Englishmen, and they will safeguard our liberties, and keep for us still the England we love. When the war is over, and all danger is gone, I suppose that you, who stand idly by, and talk about the ethics of war, will think it your right to enjoy the liberties which these brave fellows suffer and die to give you. Is that it?" "Nancy, that's not fair." "I want to be fair. Tell me, is that your attitude? It is un-English, and it is cowardly. Is it yours?" "I will not try to answer you, Nancy--I should be sorry afterwards, perhaps; but--but--Nancy, is everything over between us?" "That's for you to say." "For me?" "Yes, you. You have your choice. I--I had nearly overcome dad's--objections to you." "But, Nancy, do you mean to say that----" "I can never marry a man who shrinks from his duty at such a time as this? Yes, I mean that." "Nancy, you make it a choice between you and my conscience." For a few seconds she looked at him without speaking. Her lips were quivering, and her hands were trembling. It was easy to see that she was greatly wrought upon. "No, that is not the choice," she said, and her voice had a hard ring in it. "What is it, then?" "A choice between me and cowardice." He staggered as if some one had struck him. "Do you mean that?" he asked hoarsely. "Yes, I mean that." Without speaking another word, he staggered blindly out of the house. Nancy heard him close the front door behind him, and then, throwing herself into a chair, sobbed as though her heart would break. CHAPTER VIII For the next few days St. Ia was completely under the influence of the war fever. Although we have only about three thousand inhabitants, three hundred of our men belonging to the Naval Reserve left in one day, while many who were away in their fishing-boats were expected to join their vessels as soon as they could return home. Young territorials left the neighbourhood by the score, and many a lad who had previously been laughed at, when wearing his uniform, was looked upon as a kind of hero, and everywhere one turned, the only subject of conversation was the war. Each morning at eight o'clock, the time at which our newspapers usually arrive, there was such a rush for the train, in order to obtain early copies, as I had never seen before; and presently, when the news came that an army consisting of one hundred thousand men had landed on French soil without even a hitch or casualty, we cheered wildly. Evidently our War-office machinery was in good order, and our soldiers, perhaps the best armed and equipped that ever left our shores, would, we were sure, give a good account of themselves.