my soul!"

"She says," proceeded Mr. Brewster, referring to the letter again, "that
they were both so much in love that they simply had to slip off and get
married, and she hopes I won't be cross. Cross!" gasped Mr. Brewster,
gazing wildly at his friend.

"Very disturbing!"

"Disturbing! You bet it's disturbing! I don't know anything about
the fellow. Never heard of him in my life. She says he wanted a quiet
wedding because he thought a fellow looked such a chump getting married!
And I must love him, because he's all set to love me very much!"

"Extraordinary!"

Mr. Brewster put the letter down.

"An Englishman!"

"I have met some very agreeable Englishmen," said Professor Binstead.

"I don't like Englishmen," growled Mr. Brewster. "Parker's an
Englishman."

"Your valet?"

"Yes. I believe he wears my shirts on the sly,'" said Mr. Brewster
broodingly, "If I catch him--! What would you do about this, Binstead?"

"Do?" The professor considered the point judiciary. "Well, really,
Brewster, I do not see that there is anything you can do. You must
simply wait and meet the man. Perhaps he will turn out an admirable
son-in-law."

"H'm!" Mr. Brewster declined to take an optimistic view. "But an
Englishman, Binstead!" he said with pathos. "Why," he went on, memory
suddenly stirring, "there was an Englishman at this hotel only a week or
two ago who went about knocking it in a way that would have amazed you!
Said it was a rotten place! MY hotel!"

Professor Binstead clicked his tongue sympathetically. He understood his
friend's warmth.

CHAPTER III. MR. BREWSTER DELIVERS SENTENCE

At about the same moment that Professor Binstead was clicking his tongue
in Mr. Brewster's sitting-room, Archie Moffam sat contemplating his
bride in a drawing-room on the express from Miami. He was thinking that
this was too good to be true. His brain had been in something of a
whirl these last few days, but this was one thought that never failed to
emerge clearly from the welter.

Mrs. Archie Moffam, nee Lucille Brewster, was small and slender. She
had a little animated face, set in a cloud of dark hair. She was so
altogether perfect that Archie had frequently found himself compelled
to take the marriage-certificate out of his inside pocket and study it
furtively, to make himself realise that this miracle of good fortune had
actually happened to him.

"Honestly, old bean--I mean, dear old thing,--I mean, darling," said
A