that he was, if not a rich man for modern days, still, as
David would have put it, "wuth consid'able." No man, I take it, is very
likely to receive such a piece of news without satisfaction; but if our
friend's first sensation was one of gratification, the thought which
followed had a drop of bitterness in it. "If I could only have had it
before!" he said to himself; and indeed many of the disappointments of
life, if not the greater part, come because events are unpunctual. They
have a way of arriving sometimes too early, or worse, too late.

Another circumstance detracted from his satisfaction: a note he
expected did not appear among the other communications waiting him at
the bankers, and his mind was occupied for the while with various
conjectures as to the reason, none of which was satisfactory. Perhaps
she had changed her mind. Perhaps--a score of things! Well, there was
nothing for it but to be as patient as possible and await events. He
remembered that she had said she was to visit some friends by the name
of Hartleigh, and she had told him the name of their villa, but for the
moment he did not remember it. In any case he did not know the
Hartleighs, and if she had changed her mind--as was possibly indicated
by the omission to send him word--well----! He shrugged his shoulders,
mechanically lighted a cigarette, and strolled down and out of the
Piazza Martiri and across to the Largo della Vittoria. He had a
half-formed idea of walking back through the Villa Nazionale, spending
an hour at the Aquarium, and then to his hotel for luncheon. It occurred
to him at the moment that there was a steamer from Genoa on the Monday
following, that he was tired of wandering about aimlessly and alone, and
that there was really no reason why he should not take the said steamer
and go home. Occupied with these reflections, he absently observed, just
opposite to him across the way, a pair of large bay horses in front of a
handsome landau. A coachman in livery was on the box, and a small
footman, very much coated and silk-hatted, was standing about; and, as
he looked, two ladies came out of the arched entrance to the court of
the building before which the equipage was halted, and the small footman
sprang to the carriage door.

One of the ladies was a stranger to him, but the other was Mrs. William
Ruggles; and John, seeing that he had been recognized, at once crossed
over to the carriage; and presently, having accepted an invitation