nly the
name I write under. And I had the pleasure of having your son in my
form at St. Peter's for some time. Hadn't I, Colin?'

'Yes, sir,' said Colin, shyly, still rather overcome by so unexpected
an apparition, and thinking this would be something to tell 'the
fellows' next day.

Mabel laughed merrily. 'Mr. Ashburn, I wonder how many more people you
will turn out to be!' she said. 'If you knew how afraid I was of you
when I used to help Colin with his Latin exercises, and how angry when
you found me out in any mistakes! I pictured you as a very awful
personage indeed.'

'So I am,' said Mark, 'officially. I'm sure your brother will agree to
that.'

'I don't think he will,' said Mabel. 'He was so sorry when they moved
him out of your form, that you can't have been so very bad.'

'I liked being in the Middle Third, sir,' said Colin, regaining
confidence. 'It was much better fun than old--I mean Mr. Blatherwick's
is. I wish I was back again--for _some_ things,' he qualified
conscientiously.

When the time came to take his leave, Mrs. Langton asked for his
address, with a view to an invitation at no distant time. A young man,
already a sort of celebrity, and quite presentable on other accounts,
would be useful at dances, while he might serve to leaven some of her
husband's slightly heavy professional dinners.

Mabel gave him her hand at parting with an air of entire friendliness
and good understanding which she did not usually display on so short
a probation. But she liked this Mr. Ashburn already, who on the last
time she had met him had figured as a kind of hero, who was the
'swell' master for whom, without having seen him, she had caught
something of Colin's boyish admiration, and who, lastly, had stirred
and roused her imagination through the work of his own.

Perhaps, after all, he was a little conceited, but then it was not an
offensive conceit, but one born of a confidence in himself which was
fairly justified. She had not liked his manner of disparaging his
first work, and she rather distrusted his idealising theories; still,
she knew that clever people often find it difficult to do justice to
their ideas in words. He _might_ produce a work which would take rank
with the very greatest, and till then she could admire what he had
already accomplished.

And besides he was good-looking--very good-looking; his dark eyes had
expressed a very evident satisfaction at being there and talking to
her--which of