him again.

The original conception of their honeymoon had been identical with the
plans Benham had made for the survey and study of the world, and it was
through a series of modifications, replacements and additions that it
became at last a prolonged and very picturesque tour in Switzerland,
the Austrian Tyrol, North Italy, and down the Adriatic coast. Amanda
had never seen mountains, and longed, she said, to climb. This took them
first to Switzerland. Then, in spite of their exalted aims, the devotion
of their lives to noble purposes, it was evident that Amanda had no
intention of scamping the detail of love, and for that what background
is so richly beautiful as Italy? An important aspect of the grand tour
round the world as Benham had planned it, had been interviews, inquiries
and conversations with every sort of representative and understanding
person he could reach. An unembarrassed young man who wants to know and
does not promise to bore may reach almost any one in that way, he is as
impersonal as pure reason and as mobile as a letter, but the presence of
a lady in his train leaves him no longer unembarrassed. His approach has
become a social event. The wife of a great or significant personage must
take notice or decide not to take notice. Of course Amanda was prepared
to go anywhere, just as Benham's shadow; it was the world that was
unprepared. And a second leading aspect of his original scheme had been
the examination of the ways of government in cities and the shifting
and mixture of nations and races. It would have led to back streets, and
involved and complicated details, and there was something in the fine
flame of girlhood beside him that he felt was incompatible with those
shadows and that dust. And also they were lovers and very deeply
in love. It was amazing how swiftly that draggled shameful London
sparrow-gamin, Eros, took heart from Amanda, and became wonderful,
beautiful, glowing, life-giving, confident, clear-eyed; how he changed
from flesh to sweet fire, and grew until he filled the sky. So that you
see they went to Switzerland and Italy at last very like two ordinary
young people who were not aristocrats at all, had no theory about the
world or their destiny, but were simply just ardently delighted with the
discovery of one another.

Nevertheless Benham was for some time under a vague impression that in
a sort of way still he was going round the world and working out his
destinies.

It was pa