rthur Maxwell, Bart., K.C.B., K.C.S.I., looked keenly into his
son's face while he was giving this rapid summary of his evening's
adventure. There was and always had been the most absolute confidence
between them. Ever since Vane had been old enough they had been
companions and chums, rather than father and son, and so Sir Arthur had
not the slightest doubt but that Vane was telling the absolute truth. He
was only looking to see whether the telling of the truth embarrassed him
or not, and he was well pleased to see that it did not.

"Quite an interesting experience, I must say," he said, a little
gruffly. "Well, I'm glad to see, at any rate, that you didn't accompany
the young lady home. I presume you were invited."

"On the contrary, dad," replied Vane, this time with a little hesitation
in his tone, "to tell you the honest truth----"

"That was a needless opening, Vane. My son could not tell anything else.
Go on."

"Well, the fact is, dad, it was the other way about. I suggested it, and
she refused point blank. I'm afraid I'd had rather too much fizz on top
of too many brandies and sodas before supper."

"That will do, Vane," said his father, a little stiffly. "At any rate,
thank God you are not drunk or anything like it. But this is hardly the
sort of thing to discuss in the street. We'll go into the Den and have a
chat and a smoke before we go to bed. You know I'm not squeamish about
these things. I know that a lad of twenty is made of flesh and blood
just as a man of thirty or forty is, and although I consider what is
called sowing wild oats foolish as well as a most ungentlemanly pastime,
still, I equally don't believe in the innocence of ignorance, at least
not for a man."

"You seem to forget, dad," replied Vane, answering him in something very
like his own tone, "just as I'm sorry to say I forgot for a minute or
two to-night that I am engaged to Enid."

"Quite right, boy," said his father as they went in at the gate. "I
didn't forget it though, and I'm glad you remembered it."

"Only I ought to have said that it was the girl who reminded me of it,"
said Vane, as he put his latch-key into the door.

When they got into the Den, which was a sort of combination room, partly
a library and partly study and smoking-room with a quaint suggestion of
Oriental fantasy about it, Sir Arthur, according to his wont at that
time of night, unlocked the spirit case, and mixed himself a whiskey and
soda. As he did so, V