She had drawn him out on to the balcony, where he had a few minutes’ conversation with Mr. Leslie, to whom he confided in an undertone that he was going to Liverpool the next day with his mother, on a visit to an uncle, where he would remain until the next mail sailed for America, where he had now decided to remain for the rest of his life. He had excellent prospects out there, and was already getting on far better than he had ever hoped to do in so short a time. Already he had been made cashier, and he had no doubt in a few years he would be appointed manager of the bank, as Mr. Leslie’s friend had taken a great fancy to him. He was now able to carry on his natural history studies, and was making great progress, and had hopes of one day becoming a naturalist, for he now had the means of procuring books which were before far out of his reach, and the new country opened out to him a new field of research. All this he managed to tell Mr. Leslie while the procession was still preparing to start. He did not tell him what had brought him to England, but Mr. Leslie knew without being told that Fairy was the motive power which had induced him to cross the Atlantic, in the vain hope of persuading her to return with him as his wife. One glance at Rex and Fairy had told Jack this hope was futile, but still it was a satisfaction to see for himself; and he would now go back to his mother, and persuade her to accompany him to Liverpool the next day if possible. He had only arrived at Lewes that morning, and on finding that Fairy was staying at the Leslies to go to the carnival with them and Mr. de Courcy, he had settled to go too in the hope of seeing her without being seen. He had chosen to wear his smock-frock for the first and only time in his life, partly to please his father, for whom Jack felt he could not do enough to repay his kindness, when he was under that black cloud which had cast a shadow over all his life; partly he wore it because Fairy made it, and partly because he would attract less attention among the masqueraders, who would imagine he was a shepherd come from some of the neighbouring sheep farms to see the carnival, and would not interfere with him; whereas if he had walked about in plain clothes—and he had no others with him—he would probably have been mobbed.