r hands."

"Miss Bliss can take good care of herself," she announced, sitting down.

"No doubt of that," assented Shafto; "all the same, Miss Leigh and I
will attend Miss Bliss to supper."

"No, no," she protested, "I have planned to take in Mr. Gregory."

"That is if you can get hold of him," argued her late partner; "he is
playing bridge."

"Oh well, anyway, _I_ shan't go begging!" said Fuchsia, leaning back on
the lounge and crossing her tiny, exquisitely shod feet.

"But whoever dreamt of that?" exclaimed Shafto. "And here by great
good luck comes Gregory. I say, he looks as if his last partner had
gone No Trumps on a Yarborough!"

Almost before he had joined them the police officer disappeared, and
the party adjourned to the supper-room, where they found places at the
same round table as Mrs. Pomeroy and Herr Bernhard. Herr Krauss, a
ponderous free lance, who was completely detached, joined the circle
uninvited, and pushed his huge person into an empty chair, next to Miss
Bliss. The soup, hot quails, and champagne were above criticism. Miss
Bliss, as usual, did most of the talking and entertained the company.

"What a difference there is between our dancing and the native
performance," she remarked. "Our tangos and turkey-trotting are just
an amusement, ending in a feast, whilst their diversion is mostly
prayers, intoning, gongs, and bells, burning candles and telling beads.
The Burmese seem to be always thinking of their souls; Oriental nations
beat us at religion."

"Religion, such as it is!" rejoined Bernhard with a sneer. "After all,
what does it amount to with them but the fear of evil spirits and the
propitiation of _nats_ and demons? Crowds go to the Pagoda and offer
flowers, prayers and candles, yet all the time their faith is not in
Buddha, but in devils. They cover up their pillars and offer
sacrifices to the _nats_, build them nice little houses, make them
flattering speeches, and look for a return in the shape of a piece of
luck! Buddhism is merely a philosophy--not a religion," he concluded
sententiously.

"Well, there is one item in their faith which I admire," said Shafto;
"they have no fear of death--they firmly believe that we shall pass
into another existence, and how we fare in the next world depends on
our good or evil deeds in this."

"Surely that is an ordinary point of view," said Fuchsia, "and talking
of evil deeds, such as big and little lies--murder--robbery--fraud,