that were equally worthless.

All this happened later, however; when the fuss was made about
the atrocities by an explorer in New Guinea, and Mr. Ayrton was
contemplating a counter question that should cast ridicule upon the
missionaries and their champion, he was given to understand by the
leaders of his party, who, it was believed, had a small parcel of
baronetcies done up in official twine, with blank spaces for the name
and address in each, awaiting distribution at the first change of
Government, that he must take no step that might jeopardize the
relations of the party with the vendors of the Nonconformists
Conscience. The _Spiritual Aneroid_ was the leading Nonconformist organ,
and it would not do to sneer at the missionaries whom it supported. It
would be better that all the explorers who had ever risked their lives
on behalf of civilization should go by the board than that a single vote
should be lost to the party, he was assured by the Senior Whip.

This was rather irritating to the artist in phrases; because it stood to
reason that the majority of his phrases were calculated to be hurtful
to his opponents. He was thus quite elated when he came upon something
which would, he felt sure, call comment in the press at the expense
of the member from Wales without casting any slight upon Nonconformist
Missionary enterprise.

He read out the thing to his daughter, and he was surprised to find that
she was not appreciative of its unique charm. This was rather too bad,
he felt, considering that it was she who had enlisted his services in
this particular matter.

"I don't think Mr. Courtland wants anybody to take his part in
Parliament or out of it," said she. "And that's why I think it would be
better to let that Mr. Apthomas ask his question without interruption.
What can the Minister of Annexation say except that he has no
information on the subject, and that if he had he could not interfere,
as he had no jurisdiction on the Fly River?"

"That is what he will reply as a matter of course," said her father.
"But that will not prevent the newspapers that are on the side of Wales
and the missionaries from saying what they please in the way of comment
on the atrocities in New Guinea."

"Mr. Courtland will not mind whatever they may say," cried Phyllis.

"That was the view I took of the matter in regard to Mr. Courtland's
attitude when you mentioned it to me at first," said he. "I didn't
suppose that he was the man