l get me into her cabin somehow. It's a single
cabin; but one of us could sleep on the floor. If you consent, she'll go
up now and get permission."

'Consent?' thought Jolyon. 'Rather late in the day to ask for that!' But
again he checked himself.

"You're too young, my dear; they won't let you."

"June knows some people that she helped to go to Cape Town. If they
won't let me nurse yet, I could stay with them and go on training there.
Let me go, Dad!"

Jolyon smiled because he could have cried.

"I never stop anyone from doing anything," he said.

Holly flung her arms round his neck.

"Oh! Dad, you are the best in the world."

'That means the worst,' thought Jolyon. If he had ever doubted his creed
of tolerance he did so then.

"I'm not friendly with Val's family," he said, "and I don't know Val,
but Jolly didn't like him."

Holly looked at the distance and said:

"I love him."

"That settles it," said Jolyon dryly, then catching the expression on
her face, he kissed her, with the thought: 'Is anything more pathetic
than the faith of the young?' Unless he actually forbade her going it
was obvious that he must make the best of it, so he went up to town with
June. Whether due to her persistence, or the fact that the official they
saw was an old school friend of Jolyon's, they obtained permission for
Holly to share the single cabin. He took them to Surbiton station the
following evening, and they duly slid away from him, provided with
money, invalid foods, and those letters of credit without which Forsytes
do not travel.

He drove back to Robin Hill under a brilliant sky to his late dinner,
served with an added care by servants trying to show him that they
sympathised, eaten with an added scrupulousness to show them that he
appreciated their sympathy. But it was a real relief to get to his cigar
on the terrace of flag-stones--cunningly chosen by young Bosinney for
shape and colour--with night closing in around him, so beautiful a
night, hardly whispering in the trees, and smelling so sweet that it
made him ache. The grass was drenched with dew, and he kept to those
flagstones, up and down, till presently it began to seem to him that he
was one of three, not wheeling, but turning right about at each end,
so that his father was always nearest to the house, and his son always
nearest to the terrace edge. Each had an arm lightly within his arm; he
dared not lift his hand to his cigar lest he should disturb th