The Whirlpool

the imperfect epicure. His club had no culinary fame; the dinner was merely tolerable; but Rolfe's unfinished palate flattered the second-rate cook. He knew no

r vaunted his satisfactions. He had known the pasture of poverty, and the table as it is set by L

steam highroad, and so preserves much of the beauty and tranquillity of days gone by. Rolfe seldom spoke of his own affairs, but in talking of travel he had been heard to mention that his father had engineered certain lines of foreign railway. It seemed that Harvey had no purpose in life, save that of enjoying himself. Obviously he read a good deal, and Carnaby credited him with profound historical knowledge; but he neither wrote nor threatened to do so. Something of cynicism appeared in his talk of public matters; politics amused him, and his social views lacked consistency, tending, however, to an indolent conservatism. Despite his convivial qualities, he had traits of the reserved, even of the unsociable, man: a slight awkwardness in bearing, a mute shyness with strangers, a hesitancy in ordinary talk, and occasional bluntness of assertion or contradiction, suggesting a contempt

ence of costume-Rolfe wore morning dress, Morphew the suit of ceremony-accentuated the younger man's advantage in natural and acquired graces; otherwise, they presented the contrast of character and insignificance. Rolfe had a shaven chin, a weathered complexion, thick brown hair; the penumbra of middle-age had touched his countenance, softening here and there a line which tol

culate at all?

o about it,' replied the

ve studied the thing-got it up as I used to work at something for an exam. And here, you see, I've made five pounds at a stroke-five pounds! Suppose I make that ev

quite sur

t is! Let

t, but all else. that he possessed, including his jewellery. He had gambled deliberately; he wanted money, money, and saw no other way of obtaining it. In the expansive mood of convalescence, Cecil Morphew left no detail of his story unrevealed. He was of gentle birth, and had a private income of three hundred pounds, charged upon the estate of a distant relative; his profession (the bar) could not be remunerative for years, and other prospects he had none. The misery of his situation lay in the fact that he was desperately in love with the daughter of people who looked upon him as little better than a pauper. The girl had pledged herself to him, but would not marry

e with moderate success. Look at the big men-the brokers and the company promoters, and so on; I've met s

e no

in a small way-by chance. No doubt he found it so easy to make money he was surprised at his success. Tripcony has told

I shouldn't put much faith in Tripcony; but Frothin

here's a certain knack

om were now occupied, and the general hum of talk gave security to intimate

on five hundred, she

dee

do you think? Plenty of peo

my serious

can be s

an who marries on less than a tho

won't talk

Rolfe giving a nod here and there as he passed a

rnaby take t

t af

e has been robbed-stripped.

k till midnight, left no mystery in the matter. The clubmen talked of it with amusement. Hard lines, to be sure, for Carnaby, and yet harder for his wife, who had lost no end of jewellery; but the thing was so neatly and completely done, one must needs laugh. One or two husbands who enjoyed the luxury of a housekeeper betrayed their uneasiness. A discussion arose on the characteristics of

out into the cold, clammy November night. He was overtaken by a fellow Metropolitan-

fe, have you seen F

or a m

smash. To tell you the truth, I've heard unpleasant rumours. Do you-shoul

fe; he had a small, but to him important, interest in Bennet Frothingham's wide-reaching aff

said Rolfe, rather bluntly, 'if you had y

f per cent-twelve and a half! I hold pr

id you must ta

ther in alarm, 'yo

othing. I'm the last man to

oned to a passing hansom. The address he ga

full speed in the same direction. Rolfe managed to alight in the ordinary way, and at once heard himself greeted by a familiar voice from the other cab. His acquaintance showed a pallid, drawn, all but cadaverous

dly, 'but I haven't a moment to spare. Going to

driver got quickly out of the crowd, and

ager?' inquired the journa

e me a few eve

To borrow mon

l, y

his children-left them in a lodging-house at Hammersmith. How's that for cool brutality? The landlady found my wife's address, and c

s the

have every one wrenched out of my head if this g

cate the nationalisation of offspring. Probably he

fter him or not. It wouldn't benefit the childre

h, I sho

f it is, I don't like the poor little wretches, and

ou must let me go

looked at his watch. 'Thirteen minutes-shall I do it? There's a good local paper, the Free Press, and I have the offer of part-ownership. I shall buy, if poss

olfe bade his friend goodb