it,' but I had to explain to him why it was
anomalous that this should be so.

'It came a good many miles over desert from somewhere,' he remarked, as
I made a note of inquiry as to the present direction of trade in woven
goods from Persia, 'I had to pound it for a week to get the dust out.'

We spent an hour looking over work he had done down in the plains, and
then I took my leave. It did not occur to me at the moment to ask
Armour to come to the club or to offer to do anything for him; all the
hospitality, all that was worth offering seemed so much more at his
disposition than at mine. I only asked if I might come again, mentioning
somewhat shyly that I must have the opportunity of adding, at my
leisure, to those of his pictures that were already mine by transaction
with the secretary of the Art Exhibition. I left him so astonished that
this had happened, so plainly pleased, that I was certain he had never
sold anything before in his life. This impression gave me the uplifted
joy of a discoverer to add to the satisfactions I had already drawn from
the afternoon; and I almost bounded down the hill to the Mall. I left
the pi dog barking in the veranda, and I met Mr. Rosario coming up,
but in my unusual elation I hardly paused to consider either of them
further.

The mare and her groom were waiting on the Mall, and it was only when
I got on her back that the consciousness visited me of something
forgotten. It was my mission--to propose to take Armour, if he were
'possible,' to call upon the Harrises. Oh, well, he was possible enough;
I supposed he possessed a coat, though he hadn't been wearing it; and
I could arrange it by letter. Meanwhile, as was only fair, I turned the
mare in the direction of the drawing-room where I had reason to believe
that Miss Dora Harris was quenching her impatience in tea.

Chapter 2.IV.

The very next morning I met Armour on my way to the office. He was
ambling along on the leanest and most ill-groomed of bazaar ponies,
and he wore a bowler. In Simla sun hats are admissible, straw hats are
presentable, and soft felt hats are superior, but you must not wear a
bowler. I might almost say that if one's glance falls upon a bowler, one
hardly looks further; the expectation of finding an acquaintance under
it is so vain. In this instance, I did look further, fortunately, though
in doing so I was compelled to notice that the bowler was not lifted
in answer to my salutation. Of no importanc