Stern is a place, where the coast-line is a great glory. The cliffs rise there, tall, dark, majestic-grave, too, especially grave. When the sky is grey, they frown always, and even the warm rays of the setting sun but serve to light their grand solemnity. Very different is the changing sea at their foot. At times it will ripple all day, agog with smiling; anon, provoked by an idle breeze's banter, you shall see it black with rage. In the morning, maybe, it will sleep placidly enough in the sunshine, but at eventide the wind has ruffled its temper, so that it mutters and heaves with anger, breathing forth threatenings. Yet the next dawn finds it alive with mischievous merriment and splitting its sides with laughter, to think how it has duped you the night before. The great grave cliffs and the shifting sea, and, beyond, woodland and pastures and deep meadows, where the cows low in the evenings, while the elms tower above them, their leaves unshaken by the wind--it is not difficult to grow fond of Stern. And now we were sitting on the cliffs in the heat of the morning sun, half a mile from the village and another from the places where it was best to bathe. After a while: "Aren't you glad I made you come here?" said Daphne triumphantly. I sat up and stared at her sorrowfully. "Well?" she said defiantly. "You have taken my breath away," I said, "Kindly return it, and I will deal with you and your interrogatories." "I suppose you're going to say it was you--" "It was. I did. I have. But for me you would not. You are. I took the rooms. I drove the car nearly the whole way down. I got you all here. I sent the luggage on in advance." "With the result that it got here two days after we did, and I had to wear the same tie three days running, and go down to bathe in patent-leather boots, thanks very much," said Berry. Beyond saying that I was not responsible for the crass and purblind idiocy of railway officials, I ignored this expression of ingratitude and continued to deal with Daphne. "You know," I said, "there are times when I tremble for you. Only yesterday, just before dinner, I trembled for you like anything." "It's the heat," said my target, as if explaining something. "And my reward is covert reflections upon my sanity. Need I say more?" "No," said everybody. "Thank you, ladies and gentlemen, for your kind attention. The next performance will be at four o'clock this afternoon, underneath the promenade pier." I relapsed into comfortable silence and sank back into the bracken. My sister got up from the clump of heather in which she was ensconced, crossed to where I was, took my pipe out of my mouth and kissed me. "Sorry, old boy," she said; "you're not such a bad sort, really." "Dear love," said I, "what have you left behind?" "My bathing-dress, darling." In spite of the fact that I returned to the hotel and got it, they were positively rude about the bathing-cove I selected.