had fed those machines, then, with over a hundred and thirty pence.

He murmured, "Thick, thick!"

Considering that he had returned to Llandudno in the full intention of
putting his foot down, of clearly conveying to Ruth that his conception
of finance differed from hers, the second sojourn had commenced badly.
Still, he had promised to marry her, and he must marry her. Better a
lifetime of misery and insolvency than a failure to behave as a
gentleman should. Of course, if she chose to break it off.... But he
must be minutely careful to do nothing which might lead to a breach.
Such was Denry's code. The walk home at midnight, amid the
reverberations of the falling tempest, was marked by a slight
pettishness on the part of Ruth, and by Denry's polite taciturnity.

V

Yet the next morning, as the three companions sat together under the
striped awning of the buffet on the pier, nobody could have divined, by
looking at them, that one of them at any rate was the most uncomfortable
young man in all Llandudno. The sun was hotly shining on their bright
attire and on the still turbulent waves. Ruth, thirsty after a breakfast
of herrings and bacon, was sucking iced lemonade up a straw. Nellie was
eating chocolate, undistributed remains of the night's benevolence. Demo
was yawning, not in the least because the proceedings failed to excite
his keen interest, but because he had been a journalist till three a.m.
and had risen at six in order to despatch a communication to the editor
of the _Staffordshire Signal_ by train. The girls were very
playful. Nellie dropped a piece of chocolate into Ruth's glass, and Ruth
fished it out, and bit at it.

"What a jolly taste!" she exclaimed.

And then Nellie bit at it.

"Oh, it's just lovely!" said Nellie, softly.

"Here, dear!" said Ruth, "try it."

And Denry had to try it, and to pronounce it a delicious novelty (which
indeed it was) and generally to brighten himself up. And all the time he
was murmuring in his heart, "This can't go on."

Nevertheless, he was obliged to admit that it was he who had invited
Ruth to pass the rest of her earthly life with him, and not _vice
versa_.

"Well, shall we go on somewhere else?" Ruth suggested.

And he paid yet again. He paid and smiled, he who had meant to be the
masterful male, he who deemed himself always equal to a crisis. But in
this crisis he was helpless.

They set off down the pier, brilliant in the brilliant crowd. Everybody