ich and musical, and the speaker dexterously
whipped back the snowy cloth that covered his basket, and disclosed a
tempting array of the familiar square buns, joined together in rows,
richly egged and browned, and glistening in the sun.

"No, sir! I shall give her nothing so indigestible! Be off!" The old
lady waved her parasol threateningly: but nothing seemed to disturb the
good-humour of the jolly old man, who marched on, chanting his melodious
refrain:--

[Music: Chel-sea buns! Chel-sea buns hot! Chel-sea buns!

Pi-ping hot! Chel-sea buns hot! Chel-sea buns!]

"Far too indigestible, my love!" said the old lady. "Percentages will
agree with you ever so much better!"

Clara sighed, and there was a hungry look in her eyes as she watched the
basket lessening in the distance: but she meekly listened to the
relentless old lady, who at once proceeded to count off the _data_ on
her fingers.

"Say that 70 per cent. have lost an eye--75 per cent. an ear--80 per
cent. an arm--85 per cent. a leg--that'll do it beautifully. Now, my
dear, what percentage, _at least_, must have lost all four?"

No more conversation occurred--unless a smothered exclamation of "Piping
hot!" which escaped from Clara's lips as the basket vanished round a
corner could be counted as such--until they reached the old Chelsea
mansion, where Clara's father was then staying, with his three sons and
their old tutor.

Balbus, Lambert, and Hugh had entered the house only a few minutes
before them. They had been out walking, and Hugh had been propounding a
difficulty which had reduced Lambert to the depths of gloom, and had
even puzzled Balbus.

"It changes from Wednesday to Thursday at midnight, doesn't it?" Hugh
had begun.

"Sometimes," said Balbus, cautiously.

"Always," said Lambert, decisively.

"_Sometimes_," Balbus gently insisted. "Six midnights out of seven, it
changes to some other name."

"I meant, of course," Hugh corrected himself, "when it _does_ change
from Wednesday to Thursday, it does it at midnight--and _only_ at
midnight."

"Surely," said Balbus. Lambert was silent.

"Well, now, suppose it's midnight here in Chelsea. Then it's Wednesday
_west_ of Chelsea (say in Ireland or America) where midnight hasn't
arrived yet: and it's Thursday _east_ of Chelsea (say in Germany or
Russia) where midnight has just passed by?"

"Surely," Balbus said again. Even Lambert nodded this time.

"But it isn't midnight, anywhere else; so it c