s, contained long descriptions of the scenery
about him, and of the life he led. He expressed a firm confidence in
Sutherland's enterprises; beyond a doubt, there was no end of money to
be made by an energetic man; he should report most favourably to Mr.
Vawdrey, whose co-operation would of course be invaluable. For his own
part, whether he profited or not from these commercial schemes, he had
not been mistaken in foreseeing material for journalism, even for a
book. Yes, he should certainly write a book on the Bahamas, if only to
expose the monstrous system of misgovernment which accounted for the
sterility into which these islands had fallen. The climate, in winter
at all events, was superb. Sutherland and he lay about in delicious
sunshine, under a marvellous sky, smoking excellent cigars, and talking
over old Oxford days. He quoted Tennyson: 'Larger constellations
burning,' &c.

At the end of December, when Nancy, according to their agreement, began
to hope for his return, a letter in a very different tone burdened
her with dismal doubts. Tarrant had quarrelled with his friend. He had
discovered that Sutherland was little better than a swindler. 'I see
that the fellow's professed energy was all sham. He is the laziest scamp
imaginable; lazier even than his boozing old father. He schemes only to
get money out of people; and his disappointment on finding that _I_ have
no money to lose, has shown itself at length in very gross forms. I find
he is a gambler; there has just been a tremendous row between him and an
American, whom he is said to have cheated at cards. Last year he was for
several weeks in Mexico City, a place notorious for gambling, and there
lost a large sum of money that didn't belong to him.' The upshot was
that he could no longer advise Mr. Vawdrey to have anything to do with
Sutherland. But he must not leave the Bahamas yet; that would be most
unwise, as he was daily gathering most valuable information. Vawdrey
might be induced to lend him a hundred pounds or so. But he would write
again very soon.

It was the close of January when he dated his next letter. Vawdrey had
sent him fifty pounds; this, however, was to include the cost of his
return to England. 'See, then, what I have decided. I shall make a
hurried tour through the West Indian Islands, then cross to the States,
and travel by land to New York or Boston, seeing all I can afford to
on the way. If I have to come home as a steerage passenger, ne