d him, for all his
iron-grey hair, five years younger than myself. His name was--never
mind; but I know it. His profession was given as publicist--as though he
were Mr. ARNOLD WHITE or Sir HENRY NORMAN, although, for all I know, Sir
HENRY NORMAN may by now be a Brigadier-General. His reasons for visiting
England, given in English, were in connection with his profession. But
after that his English broke down; for when it came to the question what
was his sex, how do you think he had answered it? I consider that his
solution of the difficulty was an ample reward to me--and to you, if you
too have any taste in terminological exactitude--for my fracture of a
social convention. The word he had wanted was either "male" or
"masculine"; but they had evaded him. He had then cast about for English
terminology associated with men, and had thought vaguely of master and
mister. The result was that the line ran thus:--"Sex: Masterly."

And, looking at the publicist's _soigne_ moustache and firm jaw and
broad hands, I could believe it. But what an inspiration! And, dear me!
what will the Panks, if there are any left, say?

* * * * *

"To Teachers and Business Ladies. Heathful Holiday in North
Wales; brainy air."

_Provincial Paper._

Think what it has done for Mr. LLOYD
GEORGE.

* * * * *

[Illustration: _The Judge_. "Three years."

_Optimistic Prisoner_: "Couldn't you make it 'three years or the
duration of the War,' me lud?"]

* * * * *

IDENTIFICATION.

How often the kind of thing occurs that I am about to describe!

Four or five summers ago, before the world went mad, I was on one of
DAVID MACBRAYNE'S steamers on the way to a Scotch island. Among the few
passengers was an interesting man, with whom I fell into conversation.
He was a vigorous, bulky, very tall man, with a pointed grey beard and a
mass of grey hair under a panama, and he was bound, he told me, for a
well-known fishing-lodge, whither he went every August. He had been a
great traveller and knew Persia well; he had also been in Parliament,
and one of his sons was in the siege of Mafeking. So much I remember of
his affairs; but his name I did not learn. We talked much about books,
and I put him on to DOUGHTY'S _Arabia Deserta_.

I have often thought of him since and wondered who he was, and whenever
I have met fishermen or others likely to be acquain