us of this devotion or not Brett was unable to
decide. By neither word nor look was Robert indiscreet. When she was
present he was lively and talkative, entertaining the others with snatches
of strange memories drawn from an adventurous career.

It was only when she quitted their little circle that Brett detected the
mask of angry despair that settled for a moment on the young man's face,
and rendered him indifferent to other influences until he resolutely
aroused himself.

Yet, on the whole, a great improvement was visible in Frazer. Attired in
one of David's evening dress suits, carefully groomed and trimmed, he no
sooner donned the garments which gave him the outward semblance of an
aristocrat than he dropped the curt, somewhat coarse, mannerisms which
hitherto distinguished him from his cousin.

Beyond a more cosmopolitan style of speech, he was singularly like David
in person and deportment. They resembled twins rather than first cousins.
They were both remarkably fine-looking men, tall, wiry, and in splendid
condition. It was only the slightly more attenuated features of Robert
that made it possible, even for Brett, to distinguish one from the other
at a little distance.

Helen was pleased to be facetious on the point.

"Really, Davie," she said, "now that your cousin has come amongst us, you
must remove your beard at once."

"Why?" he asked.

"Because you are so alike that some evening, in these dark corridors, I
shall mistake Mr. Frazer for you."

"That won't be half bad," laughed Robert.

Nellie blushed, and endeavoured to evade the consequences of her own
remark.

"I meant," she exclaimed, "that you would be sure to laugh at me if I
treated you as Davie."

"Not at all. I would consider it a cousinly duty to make you believe I was
David, and not myself."

"Then," she cried, "I will guard against any possibility of error by
treating both of you as Mr. Robert Hume-Frazer until I am quite sure."

"Waiter!" said David, "where is the barber's shop?"

Helen became redder than ever, but they enjoyed the joke at her expense.
The waiter politely informed his questioner that the barber would not be
on duty until the morning at 8 a.m.

"Then book the first chair for me!" said David.

"And the second for me!" joined in Robert.

"Mr. Brett," said Margaret, "don't you consider this competition perfectly
disgraceful?"

"I am overjoyed," he replied. "It appears to me that the result must be
personally m