h he spoke, in that tone of forced geniality
which he generally adopted towards his cousin.

"You are asking for the hand of a considerable heiress, Alan my boy," he
said, "but you have neglected to inform me of your own position."

"Where is the use of telling you what you know already, Mr. Haswell? I
have left the firm, therefore I have practically nothing."

"You have practically nothing, and yet----Well, in my young days men
were more delicate, they did not like being called fortune-hunters, but
of course times have changed."

Alan bit his lip and Barbara sat up quite straight in her chair,
observing which indications, Mr. Haswell went on hurriedly:

"Now if you had stopped in the firm and earned the very handsome
competence in a small way which would have become due to you this week,
instead of throwing us over at the last moment for some quixotic reasons
of your own, it might have been a different matter. I do not say it
would have been, I say it might have been, and you may remember a
proverb about winks and nods and blind horses. So I ask you whether you
are inclined to withdraw that resignation of yours and bring up this
question again let us say, next Sunday?"

Alan thought a while before he answered. As he understood Mr. Haswell
practically was promising to assent to the engagement upon these terms.
The temptation was enormously great, the fiercest that he had ever been
called upon to face. He looked at Barbara. She had closed her eyes and
made absolutely no sign. For some reason of her own she had elected that
he should determine this vital point without the slightest assistance
from her. And it must be determined at once; procrastination was
impossible. For a moment he hesitated. On the one side was Barbara, on
the other his conscience. After long doubts he had come to a certain
conclusion which he quite understood to be inconvenient to his partners.
Should he throw it over now? Should he even try to make a sure and
certain bargain as the price of his surrender? Probably he would
not suffer if he did. The flotation was underwritten and bound to go
through; the scandal would come afterwards, months or years hence, long
before which he might get out, as most of the others meant to do. No, he
could not. His conscience was too much for him.

"I do not see any use in reconsidering that question, Mr. Haswell," he
said quietly; "we settled it on Friday night."

Barbara reopened her brown eyes and stared am