“Before I left I made arrangements with the Albanian to look after my garden during my absence; much as I hated leaving it to other hands I felt that I must get away or I should begin to scream upon the hills of Ephesus. I went down to Smyrna without much idea of what I should do after that, but when I got there I found a ship bound for Baku, so, thinking I might as well go there as anywhere else, I got on board and we sailed that night. I don’t want to give you a tedious account of my journey; I will only tell you that it did me all the good in the world, and that I walked up to Ephesus one evening in the late autumn with my toothbrush in my pocket and real home-coming excitement in my heart. There was the little house; there was my garden, showing quite a fair amount of colour for the time of year; there was MacPherson sitting outside, gravely playing his interminable Patience. The puppy—puppy no longer, but a dog of almost inconceivable ugliness—rushed out barking, and seized the ankle of my trousers in its joy. MacPherson looked up. “‘Hallo,’ he said. ‘Evening.’ “‘Evening,’ I replied, and sat down. “‘I believe this Patience is coming out,’ he said presently. “‘Is it?’ I answered, vastly amused. “‘Yes,’ said MacPherson, ‘if I could only get the three I should do it. Ah!’ and he made a little pounce, and shifted some cards. ‘Done it,’ he announced in a tone of mild triumph, adding regretfully, ‘now it won’t come out again for at least a week.’ “‘That’s a pity,’ I said. “‘Yes,’ he replied, ‘I reckon it comes out about once in every hundred times. Garden’s all right, isn’t it?’ “‘Splendid,’ I said; ‘I was just looking at it. How’s your digging?’ “‘That’s all right, too. Glad you’re back.’ “I was surprised at this and gratified, but my gratification was damped when his obvious train of thought had occurred to me. “‘Ready to work to-morrow?’ he asked, confirming my suspicion. “‘Rather.’ “‘That’s all right,’ he said again. “He did not ask me where I had been, and I thought I would not volunteer it, but after a day or two I did. “‘I went to the Caucasus,’ I said. “He answered, ‘Oh.’ I was not offended, only greatly amused; he was a perpetual joy to me, that man.