o her feet. At last a telegraph-boy arrived.
Before anybody could discover whom the wire was addressed to, Suzanne
snatched it from the boy, tore it open, placed her hand in the region of
her heart and exclaimed, 'Oh, how provoking! Poor Percival's--' then she
turned it the right way up, looked unutterably foolish and meekly handed it
over to Aunt Lucy. It was from the old lady's stockbroker and referred to
some transaction or other in Housing Bonds."

"And what did Aunt Lucy say?" I asked.

"Oh, she just looked the least little bit surprised," replied Toby, "but
she didn't utter. Suzanne had to embrace the muddiest of all the cocker
pups to hide her flaming cheeks."

"Well, what happened then?"

"Then? Oh, then the telegraph-boy fished out another wire from his wallet.
I took it, glanced at the envelope and handed it to Suzanne. This time she
read it very gingerly before exclaiming in a highly unemotional voice: 'Oh,
how provoking! Poor Percival's got one of his sudden attacks of malaria and
can't come. So, if you don't mind, Aunt Lucy, I'll catch the eleven-fifteen
back.' Aunt Lucy was very sympathetic and went up to help her with her
packing, which was accomplished in a surprisingly short time; as a matter
of fact she had practically done it all before breakfast. Just as she was
going to drive off to the station up came another telegraph-boy. That was
your second wire, and Suzanne didn't seem any too pleased to receive it.
I'm not at all convinced," concluded Toby, "that your wife would make her
fortune on the stage."

"Do you think Aunt Lucy suspects?" I asked.

"Bless you, no. The dear old thing has the heart of a child."

Maybe, but I have my doubts. Suzanne's aunt insisted on my staying a week
as a preventive against a nervous breakdown, and the tonic with which she
herself dosed me several times a day was the most repulsive beverage I had
ever tasted, effectually ruining the savour of figs and mulberries. Can it
be that Aunt Lucy is not only of a suspicious but also of a revengeful
nature?

Suzanne ridicules my doublings and declares that she could make her aunt
swallow anything. I wish she could have made her swallow my tonic.

* * * * *

[Illustration: THE QUESTION OF THE YACHTING CAP.

HE DIDN'T WANT TO LOOK LIKE EVERY TOM, DICK AND HARRY, HE SAID, SO HE
DECIDED TO GO IN HIS YACHTING CAP.]

* * * * *

[Illustration: BRITISH ASSOCIATI