n their hats and followed the portly man from the room. Bunce
was talking with Grail, pointing with dirty forefinger to something in
his dirty note-book. But he, too, speedily moved to the hat-pegs. Grail
was also going, when Egremont said:

'Could you spare me five minutes, Mr. Grail; I should like to speak to
you.'

CHAPTER VIII

A CLASP OF HANDS

Grail approached the desk with pleasure. Egremont observed it, and met
his trusty auditor with the eye-smile which made his face so agreeable.

'I am sorry to see that Mr. Ackroyd no longer sits by you,' he began.
'Has he deserted us?'

Gilbert hesitated, but spoke at length with his natural directness.

'I'm afraid so, sir.'

'He has lost his interest in the subject?'

'It's not exactly the bent of his mind. He only came at my persuasion
to begin with. He takes more to science than literature.'

'Ah, I should have thought that. But I wish he could have still spared
me the two hours a week. I felt much interest in him; it's a
disappointment to lose him so unexpectedly. I'm sure he has a head for
our matters as well as for science.'

Grail was about to speak, but checked himself. An inquiring glance
persuaded him to say:

'He's much taken up with politics just now. They don't leave the mind
very quiet.'

'Politics? I regret more than ever that he's gone.'

Egremont moved away from the desk at which he had been standing, and
seated himself on the end of a bench which came out opposite the
fire-place.

'Come and sit down for a minute, will you, Mr. Grail?' he said.

Gilbert silently took possession of the end of the next bench.

'Is there no persuading him back? Do you think he would come and have a
talk with me? I do wish he would; I believe we could understand each
other. You see him occasionally?'

'Every day. We work together.'

'Would you ask him to come and have a chat with me here some evening?'

'I shall be glad to, sir.'

'Pray persuade him to. Any evening he likes. Perhaps next Sunday after
the lecture would do? Tell him to bring his pipe and have a smoke with
me here before the fire.'

Grail smiled, and undertook to deliver the invitation.

'But there are other things I wished to speak of to you,' Egremont
continued. 'Do you think it would be any advantage if I brought books
for the members of the class to take away and use at their leisure?
Shakespeare, of course, you can all lay hands on, but the other
Elizabethan authors are