ightly. "But if you desire to forget
anything you should begin early. It is not a habit acquired in later
life."

He rose as he spoke and looked at the clock. He had a habit of peering
and contracting his round brown eyes which made many people think that
he was short-sighted.

"I do not think I will wait for the Mangles," he said. "Especially
Julie. I do not feel in the humor for Julie. By-the-way--" He paused,
and contemplated the fire thoughtfully. "You never talk politics,
I know. With the Mangles you may go further, and not even talk of
politicians. It is no affair of theirs that Cartoner may have quitted
Warsaw--you understand?"

"I should have thought Mr. Joseph Mangles the incarnation of
discretion," said Wanda.

"Ah! You have found out Mangles, have you? I wonder if you have found
us all out. Yes, Mangles is discreet, but Netty is not. I call her
Netty--well, because I regard her with a secret and consuming passion."

"And have an equally secret and complete contempt for her discretion."

"Ah!" he exclaimed, and turned to look at her again. "Have I concealed
my admiration so successfully as that? Perhaps I have overdone the
concealment."

"Perhaps you have overdone the contempt," suggested Wanda. "She is
probably more discreet than you think, but I shall not put her to the
test."

"You see," said Deulin, in an explanatory way, "Cartoner may have had
reasons of his own for leaving without drum or trumpet. You and I are
the only persons in Warsaw who know of his departure, except the people
in the passport-office--and the others, whose business it is to watch us
all. You have a certain right to know; because in a sense you brought
it all about, and it concerns the safety of your father and Martin. So
I took it upon myself to tell you. I was not instructed to do so by
Cartoner. I have no message of politeness to give to any one in Warsaw.
Cartoner merely saw that it was his duty to go, and to go at once; so
he went at once. And with a characteristic simplicity of purpose, he
ignored the little social trammels which the majority of mankind know
much better than they know their Bible, and follow much more closely. He
was too discreet to call and say good-bye--knowing the ways of servants
in this country. He will be much too discreet to send a conge card by
post, knowing, as he does, the Warsaw post-office."

He took up his hat as he sat, and broke suddenly into his light and
pleasant laugh.

"You are w