nintentional and silent partner to the keeping of vital
intelligence from the fair Lady Rosemary?

Over all,--had I done right or wrong?

What did duty now demand of me? Should I hurry home and face the fresh
problems there which were sure to arise now that Harry had succeeded to
the titles and estates? Should I remain by the post I had accepted
from the hands of Mr. K. B. Horsfal and test thoroughly this new and
exhilarating life which, so far, I had merely tasted?

I had no doubts as to what my inclinations and desires were. But it
was not a question of inclinations and desires:--it was simply one of
duty.

All night long, I sat on the veranda steps with my elbows on my knees
and my head in my upturned hands, fighting my battle; until, at last,
when the grey was creeping up over the hills behind me and touching the
dark surface of the sea in front here and there with mellow lights, I
rose and went in to the house,--my conscience clear as the breaking
day, my mind at rest like the rose-coloured tops of the mountains.

I had no regrets. I had done as a true Brammerton should. I had done
the right.

I would not go back;--not yet. I would remain here for a while in my
obscurity, testing out the new life and executing as faithfully as I
knew how the new duties I had voluntarily assumed.

Further,--for my peace of mind,--so long as I remained in Golden
Crescent, I decided I would not cast my eyes over the columns of any
newspaper coming from the British Isles. If I were to be done with the
old life, I must be done with it in every way.

CHAPTER XII

Joe Clark, Bully

With the advent of Monday morning, the Golden Crescent Trading Company,
in charge of George Bremner, handyman, store-clerk, bookkeeper, buyer
and general superintendent,--opened its doors for business.

I was not overburdened with customers, for which I was not sorry, as I
had lots to do fixing the prices of my stock and setting it to rights.

But the arrival of the mail by the Tuesday steamer brought Neil
Andrews, Doolan, Gourlay and the stern, but honest-faced old Scot,
Andrew Clark, all at different times during the afternoon. Not one of
them could resist the temptation and go away without making some
substantial purchases.

I held religiously to the Rev. William Auld's list, but I found, in
most cases, that my customers were prepared to pay for their first
orders, at any rate, in cash; and, of course, I did not discourage them.