own car in the capacity of chauffeur to somebody they had
never seen. And I wanted to burst out into hysterical laughter, swear,
kick Berry, and hide in the woods. Instead of which, I went up to
Jonah, who had gone back to the engine.

"What's the trouble, sir?"

Jonah put his head into the bonnet and exploded with silent laughter.
I put my head in, too, and swore at him in a whisper. Then:

"One of the cylinders has been missing since Krainbach," he said. "I
think that's the seat of the trouble. But I've only just--"

"I think it's the carburettor, sir," said I, with a finger on the
float. "There's practically no petrol in it."

I tried the pressure pump, but it was no good. The petrol pipe was
stopped up properly.

"You'll have to have the pipe down, sir. It's the only way."

"How long will that take?" said Lord Brethe, who was standing on the
other side of the car, talking to Berry.

"It's half-an-hour's job at least, my lord."

"Oh, well, you'd better do it. Hadn't he, Dolly? We aren't pressed
for time, are we, my dear?"

"Oh, no. That is--I mean, of course. Please do everything you can,
Norval."

"Very good, madam."

I got some tools out of the tool-box and began to take the pipe down.

"Hadn't you better take your dust-coat off, man?" said Berry.

"No, thank you, sir."

Berry turned to Lord Brethe, who had come to watch the operation. "All
this comes through letting my young brother-in-law play about with the
car," he explained airily.

"No, really?" said Lord Brethe.

"Yes," said Berry. "He's done more damage, the few times he's driven
it, than a skilled chauffeur would do in five years."

"Dear me," said the other. "Knows nothing of the mechanism, I suppose?"

"Doesn't know the difference between the carburettor and the
er--exhaust."

Lord Brethe laughed. "Dear, dear. These young men," he said.

Here the spanner I was using slipped off a nut.

"Gently, my man, gently," said Berry pleasantly.

"Yes," said Lord Brethe, "be careful of the paint."

I almost choked.

"Won't you two come and talk to us?" the girl called from the other
side of the road.

"I always like watching a repair, dear," replied her uncle. "And Mr.
Pleydel is an expert."

"I think I'd better be here just to supervise," said Berry. "Er--have
you your cotton-waste handy, man?"

"It's on the step, sir," I said with an effort. "Do you want it?"

"No, no. But you should always keep it by you