To him, of course, my manners must have seemed hopelessly rude. He felt angry that I had not thought his sister worth even the ordinary politeness of a dance; and to a Canadian, who learns dancing with his bottle, and dances indoors and out on every possible occasion, the omission must have seemed incredibly ill-mannered, and the snub an unforgivable one. I cannot blame him. I remained in complete ignorance however of my crime, and, beyond feeling nervously foolish, out of place, and generally not much of a success, I had no idea I had given cause for offence until, long afterwards, I heard stories about myself and my behaviour which made me realize that I had done unpardonable things and left undone all that was best and correct. At the time, however, I had no realization that I had offended at all; and in the morning I went down according to appointment to call upon the railway official in his fine offices and hear the joyful news of my appointment to a lucrative and honourable position in the Company. It seemed a little strange to me that I was kept waiting exactly an hour in the outer office, but I was so sure of a pleasant interview with a practical result that when at last the clerk summoned me to the official’s sanctum, I went in with a smiling face and goodwill and happiness in my heart. The general manager, as I will call him, though this title disguises his actual position, greeted me, however, without a word. He was talking to a man who stood beside his desk, and though he must have heard my name announced, he did not so much as turn his head. I stood looking at the framed photographs on the wall for several moments before the man went out, and then, when the door was closed, I advanced with outstretched hand and cordial manner across the room to greet my future employer. He glanced at me frigidly, and, without even rising from his chair, gave me a stiff bow and said in a voice of the utmost formality: “Well, sir, and what can I do for you?” The words fell into my brain like so many particles of ice, and froze my tongue. Such a reception I had never dreamed of receiving. What had I done wrong? How in the world had I offended? Not even a word of apology for keeping me waiting an hour; and not even a seat offered me. I stood there foolishly for a moment, completely puzzled. Surely there must be a mistake. The man had forgotten me, or took me for somebody else. “I had an appointment with you at eleven o’clock, Mr. T.,” I said nervously, but trying to smile pleasantly. “You remember you were kind enough to say yesterday you thought you might find work for me to do in--in the railway offices.” The man’s eyes flashed, just as though he were angry, his face turned red, and I could not help suddenly noticing what a bad, weak chin he had and how common and coarse the lines of his face were. The flush seemed to emphasize all its bad points.