Tom Thrush was surprised. Jane had never seemed quite so good-looking; he considered Carl Meason had secured a valuable prize. "I'll not deny he's dealt liberally with you," said Tom; "but you're worth it." Carl Meason was satisfied when he saw Jane dressed at her best. She was even prettier than he thought; her new clothes certainly brought out her good points to perfection. The scruples of the parson were overcome after he had talked freely with Tom and Jane. He had doubts about the wisdom of the match, but kept them to himself. They were married in Little Trent Church and Eve Berkeley was present. She had been much surprised when Jane told her she was to be married to Carl Meason. "Are you quite sure you love him, Jane?" asked Eve. Jane was not quite sure, and said so. Eve warned her she was about to try a dangerous experiment, run considerable risk. "I am very fond of you, Jane, and I want to see you happy," she said. "Consider it well; there is time to draw back. You do not know much about Mr. Meason--nobody does; he is rather mysterious." After this interview with Eve Berkeley, Jane had doubts as to the wisdom of the course she was pursuing; they vanished when out of her presence. There were several villagers in the church and Jane's appearance created a mild sensation. She seemed quite the lady, exceedingly pretty. They had hitherto considered her as one of themselves, now she looked superior. Carl Meason was proud of his young bride, but he wanted her all to himself, and after a brief stay of a couple of hours they left the Sherwood Inn in his motor and started on their journey amidst the cheers of the villagers. Carl had taken care to leave a liberal amount of money with Abel Head for the villagers' benefit; he wished to create a good impression and succeeded--for a time. Tom Thrush made the most of his hours at Sherwood Inn. He was a temperate man, but this was a special occasion. There was an ample supply of liquor, to which he did full justice. The thought of returning to his cottage and finding no Jane there made him feel lonely and he remained at the Inn until closing-time. Abel Head walked some of the way with him, and as they were about to part, said: "I hope Jane will be happy. She's a good girl, far too good for Meason I'm thinking." "Her'll be all right," said Tom. "The man's behaved well; he'll be proud of her, you see if he's not." CHAPTER XIX HALF A HEAD The matches were to take place at Newmarket on the first two days. They had been arranged so that Alan Chesney might be present; leave was granted for five days, and he hurried home from the front. Since the desperate cavalry fighting with the Uhlans he had been promoted to the general staff in a special capacity kept a profound secret to all except those immediately concerned, and had already done excellent service.