The Sixth Sense

à OU

mes I think it's my heart; sometimes I suspect my spine. It doesn't exactly hurt

u are sure ther

n: Qui

Then it's onl

met anything like it

nteen and twenty-two. It sometimes comes on again at forty or thereab

: About

... Youre not going to die; but you ma

: "The Docto

ime in the East and South that this light colouring has almost faded from my memory. I associated it exclusively with England, and in time began to fancy it must be an imagination of my boyhood. The English blondes you meet returning from India by P & O are

his amazing Cumberland shoots. I was twenty or twenty-one at the time; Elsie must have been seven, and Joyce five. Mrs. Davenant was alive in those days, and Dick still unborn. My memory of the two children is a misty confusion of

nce with her, as soon as they had got over the surprise of seeing a short-frocked, golden-haired fairy marching into the ball-room and defying her father to send her home. "You know the consequences?" he had said with pathetic endeavour to preserve parental authority. "I think it's worth it," was her answer. That night the Master interceded with old Jasper to save Joyce her whipping, and t

schools because the Christmas term clashed with the hunting. I never heard the reason why she was expelled from a third; but I have no doubt it was adequate. She would ride anything that had a back, drive anything that had a bit or steering-wheel, thrash a poacher with her own hand, and take or offer a bet at any hour of the day or night. That wa

s Aintree brought me up to be presented. "I remember you quite

I said. "You hav

te skin, and blue eyes were the same as I remembered in Cumberland. A black dress c

who had passed through the fire. Something of her courage had been scorched and withered in the ordeal; my pity went out to her as we met. Joyce demanded another quality than pity. I hardly know what to call it-homage, allegiance, devotion. She impressed me, as not half a dozen people have impressed me in this life-Rhodes, Chamberlain, and one or two more-w

lton led the way in

emarked as we prepared to follow. "I was too y

I heard of yo

proach to my upbringing!' I've 'drilled incendiary lawlessness into a compact, organised force,' I'm 'an example of acute militant hysteria.' Heaven knows what else! D'you still feel equal to dining at

as sayi

into the habit of interrupting if you're a milit

as necessary to your happiness. It was an idée fixe, you were a fanatic, you broke half a Crown Derby dinner-service when you c

ok her he

an awfu

as

ith reproach in

t I imp

wonderfully

ver min

re the only thin

e not e

said by the wome

se they do

hey do, you

oom to survey her reflection in the mirror; then turned to me with

. Not content with that, you brok

embering that a

us c'est la même chose. You are still not content with looking

, and patiently stated a

if I think I've a rig

and water twenty years ago to

demned to

ting, is

ow. I've ne

did t

of the window,

rough to a table at th

"You might still be that wilful chi

one thing about

t's

she replied with a

n how near the date of the divorce was approaching. Both sat silent and reflective, one overshadowed by the Past, the other by the Future: on the opposite side of the table, living and absorbed in the Present, typifying it and luxuriatin

ment told her there was no real demand for the vote among women themselves, she had organised great peaceful demonstrations and "marches past": when sceptics belittled her processions and said

st round of the heckling campaign. For six months no Minister could address a meeting without the certainty of persistent interruption, and no sooner had it been decided first to admit only such women as were armed with tickets, and then

phere of their activities seemed governed by an almost diabolical ingenuity and resourcefulness. I heard of fresh terms of imprisonment, growing longer as the public

r rights. But if vitriol had to be thrown, she would see that it fell into the eyes of the right, responsible person: in her view it was worse than useless to attempt pressure on A by breaking B's windows. She had stood severely aloof from

ed my acquaintance with Arthur Roden to-day, and he invited me down t

assionately over the ingr

lk like that before the b

ite certain o

had medals struck to commemorate the capture of London. I've got on

at she had not an

w-breakers," I told her, "and to-night's division is going

ile to press its way through the serious mask. As I watched the eyes softening and the cheeks breaking into d

d you do?"

eure. I've lived long enough in the East to f

e won't g

ed my sh

can yo

new paper to-morrow morning. It's called the New Militant, only a penny, and really worth reading. I've written most of it myself. And then we're going to start a fresh militant campaign, rather ingenious, and dir

from his attitude of

may have the vote or go without it. You may take mine away, or give me two. Bu

have found a better description for the shy boy with the alert face and large frightened eyes. "Every one calls him that," Joyce went on. "And he doesn't like it. I should love t

know th

ned to he

aren't helpful,

ive critic," I said

n there are of you, and we shall swamp you if we all get the vote. You can't give it to some of us and not others, because the brain is not yet born that can think of a perfect partial franchise. Will you give it to property and leave out the factory workers? Will you give it to spinsters and leave out the women who bear children to the nation? Will you g

er with a dish of salted almonds, partly as a

You've only omitted one point. In a trial of streng

the more re

rha

," Joyce answered, as she finished

ed as we left the dining-ro

ot the vote..

e capture of Lon

the vote, we shall work to secure as large a share of public life as men enjoy, and we shal

e beaten? I imagine even Joyce Davenant

ice wouldn't bear and she mustn't go. Joyce went, and fell in and nearly got drow

el

erwards that she took it rath

hether she in any way appreciated the serious

division at Holloway is

I'm beaten," she interrupted. Her tone w

rth that. I've got thr

on of her sister who was coming ou

rth some

st the existing divorce law, and that's buttressed by every Church, and every dull

yebrows raised them

" she r

oyce when l

twenty y

should like to blo

in nursery frock

cks and short hair," I answer

haven't

t-off duty, in

no priva

glimpse of

-bye to it for good this eveni

ot for

friendship when war's declared. If

k you could

ed at me

es

ok my

bet?" she ch

-box," I answered. "You're dealing with t

ill you be

no i

y. Then when we're sent to prison-Sir Arthur Roden's a friend of yours-you can

insisted on segregating male and female offenders. I

d, "I'll undertake to divorce

n in the northe

nd anything wor

ition. And the m

t the monopo

rself, and under her breath

e said aloud. "Possession

you calling the law an

st of both worlds," she answered, as Els

d out as she left me. "This is it.

ow

o myself whatever's

she r

ou in six mo

oat under his arm as Joyce and

ful, isn't she

h?" I

exclaimed in di

ngly alike," I said

n mistaken fo

ell beli

not likely to make," he

oulders, and made him

ean by that, S

ng what a wife Joyce would make for a man who likes having his mind ma

rt of her audience; it mattered little how she spoke or what she ordered them to do; the fascination lay in her happy, untroubled voice, and the graceful movements of her slim, swaying body. Behind the careless front they knew of her resolute, unwhimpering courage; she tossed the laws of England in the air as a juggle

s she do it, Sera

stop her, if yo

nce have I g

rol. You've got the seeds.... No, you must just believe me when I

see of you the less I do

answered. "It isn't

lety of characterization, and brilliance of dialogue, ranks deservedly as a masterpiece. As a young man I used to do a good deal of theatre-going, and attended most of the important first nights. Why, I hardly know; possibly because there was a good deal of difficulty in getting seats, possibly because at that age it amused u

old Mrs. Wylton, "were The Second Mrs.

e been many revolutions since then! Even the wit of Wilde has grown a little out-moded since '93. As we drove down to the Cornmarket I was given to understand that the dramatic firmament had been

're taking us to see?"

emayne," h

Child of Misery'? I didn

s his first. Do y

pside down," I answered. "H

hen once I had read it, I watched the publisher's announcements for other books from the same pen. The second one belonged

The hero-for want of a better name-was torn from the pages of the book and invested by his readers with flesh and blood reality. We all wanted to know how the theme would develop, and none of us could guess. The first volume gave you the childhood and upbringing of Rupert-and incidentally revealed to my u

ow is this Tremayne?

closured my next question by jumping up

sley, the Prime Minister's wife, was pointed out to me by Joyce: she was there with her daughter, and for a moment I thought I ought to go and speak. When I recollected that we had not met since her marriage, and thought of the voluminous explanations that would be necessitated, I decided to sit on in the box

after the final curtain while the whole house rang from pit to gallery with a chorus of "Author! Author!" Th

" I was told when

o you

here the manager had advanced to the footlights and

the passage and made

up these times?"

n his admirable dinner, but as a precautionary measure against hunger in the night. Mrs. Wylton in turn

of her eyes, and caught sight of a wretched newspaper boy approaching with the last edition of an e

Suffrage

s with a determi

e said. "I've a lot of wor

I see you ag

t a small g

t. It's g

t w

ar à ou

o concern

hat are not with

n the form of match

n armistice even

her head p

son, justification and opportunity for slapping you.

any time. Seraph'll g

," I said, as I hailed a taxi

stice," she called b

e. I bring peace

l conve

s any conv

coming?" she

wered regretfully. "I'm spend

hrough the window of the taxi, a

on?" I

party. How perf

hy

she answered, as the taxi jerked its