“I don’t want to give offence,” said Johnson of St. Chad’s, “but I should say, if ever there was one, that there is a case.” He indicated with his eyebrows the chatting pair, too busy to pay attention to their neighbours, on Mrs. Rowland’s other side. “A case? I do not really know what you mean,” she said hurriedly. “Oh, I beg your pardon,” said the man, “if I remark what I oughtn’t. These sort of things are generally remarked--but some people takes them very serious,” he added, nodding his head confidentially. “Takes them serious!” If this was a college don, he had certainly a very strange way of speaking. “I think you are mistaken,” said Mrs. Rowland, “I don’t know of anything that is going on--except luncheon. May I offer you some of these, as your friend is too busy to see that you have what you want.” “Ah, he is a fellow that knows what _he_ wants,” said the don admiringly, “and doesn’t trouble himself what other people thinks. Thank you very much, I’ll take some grateful--” he added “ly,” after he had drawn a breath, making a little choke over the word--“gratefully, that’s what I mean. A man gets out of his manners never seeing a lady for--a whole term sometimes,” he said. Was he a college don? More and more puzzled was poor Evelyn, who could believe in anything rather than that she had been told what was not true. But whatever it was, she felt that it was better not to leave this person to his false ideas in respect to the young people. “Perhaps I ought to tell you,” she said, “that you are making a mistake. There is no case, if that means an--engagement, or anything of that sort. My son and daughter are very young, and so are their friends. They are boys and girls together--no one, on either side, would hear of anything of the kind.” “Oh!” said the man, who was certainly not a gentleman, whatever else he might be. He put down his plate and gave a keen look across Mrs. Rowland to Eddy, who was far too much engaged to notice anything. “Oh!” he said again; then after a pause: “I’m an old hand,” he added, “it may be you that are mistaken, ma’am, and not me.”