ssion on his
rough-hewn face.

"I can't understand you, Freddie. If ever there was a fellow who might
have been expected to take the only possible view of Underhill's
behaviour in this business, I should have said it was you. You're a
public-school man. You've mixed all the time with decent people. You
wouldn't do anything that wasn't straight yourself to save your life.
Yet it seems to have made absolutely no difference in your opinion of
this man Underhill that he behaved like an utter cad to a girl who
was one of your best friends. You seem to worship him just as much as
ever. And you have travelled three thousand miles to bring a message
from him to Jill--Good God! _Jill_!--to the effect, as far as I can
understand it, that he has thought it over and come to the conclusion
that after all she may possibly be good enough for him!"

Freddie recovered the eye-glass which the raising of his eyebrows had
caused to fall, and polished it in a crushed sort of way. Rummy, he
reflected, how chappies stayed the same all their lives as they were
when they were kids. Nasty, tough sort of chap Wally Mason had been as
a boy, and here he was, apparently, not altered a bit. At least the
only improvement he could detect was that, whereas in the old days
Wally, when in an ugly mood like this, would undoubtedly have kicked
him, he now seemed content with mere words. All the same, he was being
dashed unpleasant. And he was all wrong about poor Derek. This last
fact he endeavoured to make clear.

"You don't understand," he said. "You don't realize. You've never met
Lady Underhill, have you?"

"What has she got to do with it?"

"Everything, old bean, everything. If it hadn't been for her, there
wouldn't have been any trouble of any description, sort, or order. But
she barged in and savaged poor old Derek till she absolutely made him
break off the engagement."

"If you call him 'poor old Derek' again, Freddie," said Wally
viciously, "I'll drop you out of the window and throw your hat after
you! If he's such a gelatine-backboned worm that his mother can...."

"You don't know her, old thing! She's _the_ original hellhound!"

"I don't care what...."

"Must be seen to be believed," mumbled Freddie.

"I don't care what she's like! Any man who could...."

"Once seen, never forgotten!"

"Damn you! Don't interrupt every time I try to get a word in!"

"Sorry, old man! Shan't occur again!"

Wally moved to the window, and stood looki