"Oh, dear, no. I'm going home next week with the Valpys." "Home?" "Yes. To Thornstream, near Deswarth, in Berkshire. Papa's house, you know." "And I'll never see you again," he said dismally. "Oh, I don't know; the world is small." Maxwell groaned in vexation of spirit, thinking that the heart of this desirable maiden was as the flint which is hard; and the maiden herself, having thus worried her mouse, consoled it in a pleasant fashion. "Besides, Berkshire is not very far from London." "I know that, of course, but I have no acquaintances in Deswarth." "Oh, fie! What about Mrs. Valpy!" "Mrs. Valpy! of course, I quite forgot Mrs. Valpy," said Archie, determined to pay court at once to the old lady. "You know I like Mrs. Valpy." "Since when?" asked Kaituna, mischievously. Archie took out his watch gravely, and looked at it. "To be exact, since a minute ago." "Oh, the craft of the male sex." "The end justifies the means," quoted Archie, Jesuitically; "but oh, I say----" He stopped, and a look of alarm overspread his face. "What's the matter?" "I'm afraid I won't be able to come down to Berkshire." "Why not?" "Because I have to go to South America next month." Kaituna froze instantly, and annihilated him with a glacial look, at which he quailed visibly. "I can't help it, Miss Pethram," he said piteously, "don't look at me like that." "I'm not looking at you like that," retorted Miss Pethram vengefully. "I--I hope you'll have a pleasant voyage." "I won't! I hate the sea." "Then why go?" "Needs must, when the devil drives." "That's very coarse." "But it's very true. I beg your pardon, really; but, you know, it is hard to have to go prancing about the world when you don't want to." "How long will you be out in South America?" "I don't know. Perhaps for ever, if I get yellow fever." "I wish you wouldn't talk like that." "Man is mortal," said Maxwell, with gloomy relish. "Man is silly," retorted Kaituna rising to her feet, "so I'm going to ask Mr. Clendon to sing a song." "You never ask me!" said the young man reproachfully. "Oh! can engineers sing?" Maxwell said a naughty word under his breath, and walked meekly to the piano beside her. Toby was in possession of the instrument, and was giving Miss Valpy selections from the latest London burlesque. "This is the dance, you know," he said playing a breakdown; "and then comes the song 'Skip the gutter daddy, dear,'--a rippin' song." "Sounds like it," said Maxwell, caustically; "so refined." "Well, you needn't talk my boy, I've seen you enjoying it immensely." Kaituna directed another look of scorn at the unhappy Maxwell, which inspired him with a vehement desire to break Toby's head. He refrained, however, and smiled in a sickly manner. "I prefer Shakespeare," he said at length, telling the best lie he could under the circumstances. "Dry old stick," observed Tommy, lightly. "There's no fun in him." "But he's so high class."