He waited a reasonable time for a reply, but none coming, he went on--‘I don’t want a forced confidence. You may say it’s no business of mine, and there I agree with you, and probably if you put _me_ to the question in the same fashion, I’d give you a very short answer. Remember one thing, however, old fellow--I’ve seen a precious deal more of life and the world than you have! From sixteen years of age, when _you_ were hammering away at Greek verbs and some such balderdash at Oxford, I was up at Rangoon with the very fastest set of men--ay, of women too--I ever lived with in all my life. Half of our fellows were killed off by it. Of course people will say climate, climate! but if I were to give you the history of one day--just twenty-four hours of our life up there--you’d say that the wonder is there’s any one alive to tell it.’ He turned around at this, to enjoy the expression of horror and surprise he hoped to have called up, and perceived for the first time that he was alone. He rang the bell, and asked the waiter where the other gentleman had gone, and learned that he had ordered a car, and set out for Kilgobbin Castle more than half an hour before. ‘All right,’ said he fiercely. ‘I wash my hands of it altogether! I’m heartily glad I told him so before he went.’ He smoked on very vigorously for half an hour, the burden of his thoughts being perhaps revealed by the summing-up, as he said, ‘And when you are “in for it,” Master Cecil, and some precious scrape it will be, if I move hand or foot to pull you through it, call me a Major of Marines, that’s all--just call me a Major of Marines!’ The ineffable horror of such an imputation served as matter for reverie for hours. CHAPTER IX A DRIVE THROUGH A BOG While Lockwood continued thus to doubt and debate with himself, Walpole was already some miles on his way to Kilgobbin. Not, indeed, that he had made any remarkable progress, for the ‘mare that was to rowle his honour over in an hour and a quarter,’ had to be taken from the field where she had been ploughing since daybreak, while ‘the boy’ that should drive her, was a little old man who had to be aroused from a condition of drunkenness in a hayloft, and installed in his office.