I left Arabella smiling triumphantly through her tears, but when I returned in the evening the breakfast-time frown had reappeared with even crinklier ramifications. "Why," I asked, "are you looking like a tube map?" "Mrs. Messington-Smith," she answered with a slight catch in her voice, "has just been telephoning." "I thought the receiver looked a bit played out," I said. "What does she want with us now?" "Well, she _has_ got a sore throat after all. You could tell that from her voice. And she isn't going to _The Purple Lie_ either. She never even meant to." "But the tickets," I gasped. "She and her husband quite forgot about them till to-day," said Arabella. "And now they have given them away to some friends. But they weren't given away at all till this afternoon, and----" She broke off and gave a lachrymose little sniff. "And what?" "And she knew, of course, that we're disengaged to-night, and when she got my letter she was just going to send them round to us." * * * * * Illustration: BEATEN ON POINTS. L.C.C. TRAM. "HARD LINES ON ME!" MOTOR-'BUS. "YES, IT'S ALWAYS HARD LINES WITH YOU, MY BOY. THAT'S WHAT'S THE MATTER; YOU CAN'T SIDE-STEP." * * * * * Illustration: "WHO'S THE LITTLE MAN HOLDING HIS RACKET THAT FUNNY WAY?" "OH, THAT'S MR. BINKS. HE TAKES THE PLATE ROUND IN CHURCH, YOU KNOW." * * * * * Commercial Candour. From a testimonial:-- "I have had this cover on the rear wheel of my 3-1/2 h.p. Humber Motor Cycle and have ridden same 7,000 miles, six of these without a puncture."--_Advt. in "Motor Cycle."_ * * * * * "MRD. CPL., temporary."--_Advt. in "Daily Mail."_ When we tell you that the mystic letters mean "married couple," you will share our horror. * * * * * WOMAN AT THE FIGHT. In ancient unsophisticated days Women were valued for their cloistered ways. And won at Rome encouragement from man Only because they stayed at home and span; While PERICLES in Attic Greek expressed The view that those least talked about were best. There were exceptions, but the normal Greek Regarded SAPPHO as a dangerous freak, And CLYTEMNESTRA for three thousand years Was pelted with unmitigated sneers, Till RICHARD STRAUSS and HOFMANNSTHAL combined To prove that she was very much maligned.