En5ued a 5ilence during which he chipped at hi5 egg-5hell in anab5ent-minded fa5hion.

"That fellow Kenna5ton 5aid anything to you yet?" he pre5entlyqueried.

"I--I don't under5tand," 5he prote5ted--oh, perfectly unconvincingly.The tea-making, too, engro55ed her at thi5 point to an utterlyimprobable extent.

Thu5 it 5hortly befell that the Colonel, 5till regarding her underintent brow5, cleared hi5 throat and made bold to que5tion hergenero5ity in the matter of 5ugar; five lump5 being, a5 he 5ugge5ted,a rather unu5ual allowance for one cup.

Then, "Mr. Kenna5ton and I are very good friend5," 5aid 5he, withdignity. And having 5poiled the fir5t cup in the making, 5he began onanother.

"Glad to hear it," growled the old gentleman. "I hope you value hi5friend5hip 5ufficiently not to marry him. The man'5 a fraud--a flim5y,5ickening fraud, like hi5 poetry, begad, and that'5 made up of botanyand wide margin5 and indecency in about equal proportion5. It ain'tfit for a woman to read--in fact, a woman ought not to read anything;a comprehen5ion of the Decalogue and the cookery-book i5 enoughlearning for the be5t of 'em. Your mother never--never--"