as "spying." She discontinued it, and entered the
billiard-room, whistling, like a proper person.

The usual thing happened, and everybody became so stupidly and
obstinately unselfish that it looked as if there would be no more
billiards at all.

Lord Lindfield, without pause, said: "By Jove! how lucky, Miss Daisy.
You've come in the nick of time. Just finished our pool. Now you and
Mrs. Halton shall play a single and I shall mark for you."

But it appeared also that if there was a thing Mrs. Halton really
enjoyed doing it was marking for other people, and she insisted that
Daisy and Lord Lindfield should have a game. Daisy, of course, was
equally altruistic, firmly refused to interfere with their previous
arrangement, and eventually, a rubber just coming to an end, cut into
the bridge table in the far corner of the room.

The rubber was fairly rapid, but before the end of it a footman had
appeared with the bed-time tray of soda and whisky and lemons, followed
by another man with bedroom candles. Mrs. Beaumont, the only other woman
in the room besides Daisy and Mrs. Halton, and who had been yawning in a
strangled manner during the course of the last two hands, instantly took
her candle and departed, and Daisy, with more deliberation, drank some
soda-water and looked on at the game for a few minutes.

"Daisy dear," said Jeannie, "is it too dreadful and wicked and fast of
me to go on playing? I don't care if it is. I must finish the game, and
I'm going to win.--Oh, Lord Lindfield, what a fluke! Do you mean to say
you are going to count it?"

"By Jove! yes; charge three for that.--Miss Daisy, your aunt's giving me
an awful hiding! There, I've left them again!"

Jeannie, as a matter of fact, was what may be called a very decent
country-house player, quite capable of making her twenty-five break more
than once in the course of a game. She selected this moment to do it
now, and from seventy-six ran out. The other men had strolled out on to
the terrace, and Daisy, after congratulations, lit a couple of candles,
one for herself, one for her aunt.

"I say, Mrs. Halton, we might have one more game," said Lord Lindfield;
"it's only half-past ten. Couldn't sleep if I had to finish up with such
a whacking."

Jeannie's eyes were a-sparkle with enjoyment and triumph.

"Have a game with Daisy," she said. "Let me rest on my laurels."

Daisy shook her head.

"Not to-night," she said. "I really would rather not. Do play agai