ipped boxes, and T-squares and set-squares, with a hundred other
contrivances. But of course the order had now ceased to have force.
Edwin had left school; and, if he was not a man, he was certainly not a
boy. He began to open the drawers, at first gingerly, then boldly;
after all it was no business of Miss Ingamells's! And, to be just, Miss
Ingamells made no sort of pretence that it was any business of hers.
She proceeded with her own business. Edwin opened a rather large wooden
water-colour box. It was marked five and sixpence. It seemed to
comprise everything needed for the production of the most entrancing and
majestic architectural views, and as Edwin took out its upper case and
discovered still further marvellous devices and apparatus in its
basement beneath, he dimly but passionately saw, in his heart, bright
masterpieces that ought to be the fruit of that box. There was a key to
it. He must have it. He would have given all that he possessed for it,
if necessary.

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FOUR.

"Miss Ingamells," he said: and, as she did not look up immediately, "I
say, Miss Ingamells! How much does father take off in the shilling to
auntie when she buys anything?"

"Don't ask me, Master Edwin," said Miss Ingamells; "I don't know, How
should I know?"

"Well, then," he muttered, "I shall pay full price for it--that's all."
He could not wait, and he wanted to be on the safe side.

Miss Ingamells gave him change for his half-sovereign in a strictly
impartial manner, to indicate that she accepted no responsibility. And
the squaring of Edwin's shoulders conveyed to Miss Ingamells that he
advised her to keep carefully within her own sphere, and not to make
impertinent inquiries about the origin of the half-sovereign, which he
could see intrigued her acutely. He now owned the box; it was not a box
of colours, but a box of enchantment. He had had colour-boxes before,
but nothing to compare with this, nothing that could have seemed magical
to anybody wiser than a very small boy. Then he bought some
cartridge-paper; he considered that cartridge-paper would be good enough
for preliminary experiments.

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FIVE.

It was while he was paying for the cartridge-paper--he being, as was
indeed proper, on the customers' side of the counter--that a heavy
loutish boy in an apron entered the s