r of Charlotte Street he looked round to make sure he was not
followed. He then drew his keys from his pocket and let himself into a
small, mean-looking house.

Major Shepherd might have spared himself the trouble of these
precautions; no one was minded to watch him, for everyone knew
perfectly well who lived in 27, Charlotte Street. It was common talk
that the tall, dark woman who lived in 27 was Mrs Charles Shepherd,
and that the little girl who ran by Mrs Shepherd's side on the rare
occasions when she was seen in the streets--for it was said that the
Major did not wish her to walk much about the town, lest she should
attract the attention of the curious, who might be tempted to make
inquiries--was the Major's little daughter, and it had been noticed
that this little girl went forth now and then, basket on her arm, to
do the marketing. It was said that Mrs Shepherd had been a servant
in some lodging-house where the Major had been staying; other
scandal-mongers declared that they knew for certain that the Major had
made his wife's acquaintance in the street. Rumour had never wandered
far from the truth. The Major had met his wife one night as he was
coming home from his club. They seemed to suit one another; he saw
her frequently for several months, and then, fearing to lose her, in
a sudden access of jealousy--he had some time before been bitterly
jilted--he proposed to marry her. The arrival of his parents, who
came up to town beseeching of him to do nothing rash, only served to
intensify his determination, and, losing his temper utterly, he told
his father and mother that he would never set his foot in Appleton
Park in their lifetime if they ever again ventured to pry into his
private affairs; and, refusing to give any information regarding his
intentions, he asked them to leave his lodgings. What he did after
they never knew; years went by, and they sighed and wondered, but the
matter was never alluded to in Appleton Park.

But the Major had only L400 a year, and though he lived at Appleton
Park, never spending a penny more than was necessary, he could not
allow her more than L3 a week. He had so many expenses: his club, his
clothes, and all the incidental expenses he was put to in the grand
houses where he went to stay. By strict economy, however, Mrs Shepherd
managed to make two ends meet. Except when she was too ill and had to
call in a charwoman to help her with the heaviest part of the work,
she undertook th