dim wings, seemed to take up a great part of it. There were
more stars than one saw on land and the heavens struck one more than ever
as larger than the earth. Grace Mavis and her companion were not, so far
as I perceived at first, among the few passengers who lingered late, and
I was glad, because I hated to hear her talked about in the manner of the
gossips I had left at supper. I wished there had been some way to
prevent it, but I could think of none but to recommend her privately to
reconsider her rule of discretion. That would be a very delicate
business, and perhaps it would be better to begin with Jasper, though
that would be delicate too. At any rate one might let him know, in a
friendly spirit, to how much remark he exposed the young lady--leaving
this revelation to work its way upon him. Unfortunately I couldn't
altogether believe that the pair were unconscious of the observation and
the opinion of the passengers. They weren't boy and girl; they had a
certain social perspective in their eye. I was meanwhile at any rate in
no possession of the details of that behaviour which had made
them--according to the version of my good friends in the saloon--a
scandal to the ship; for though I had taken due note of them, as will
already have been gathered, I had taken really no such ferocious, or at
least such competent, note as Mrs. Peck. Nevertheless the probability
was that they knew what was thought of them--what naturally would be--and
simply didn't care. That made our heroine out rather perverse and even
rather shameless; and yet somehow if these were her leanings I didn't
dislike her for them. I don't know what strange secret excuses I found
for her. I presently indeed encountered, on the spot, a need for any I
might have at call, since, just as I was on the point of going below
again, after several restless turns and--within the limit where smoking
was allowed--as many puffs at a cigar as I cared for, I became aware of a
couple of figures settled together behind one of the lifeboats that
rested on the deck. They were so placed as to be visible only to a
person going close to the rail and peering a little sidewise. I don't
think I peered, but as I stood a moment beside the rail my eye was
attracted by a dusky object that protruded beyond the boat and that I saw
at a second glance to be the tail of a lady's dress. I bent forward an
instant, but even then I saw very little more; that scarcely mattered
ho