ength Reitzei stopped
short--Oxford Street at this time of the morning was perfectly
silent--and said,

"Beratinsky, I have a word to say to you."

"Very well," said the other, though he seemed surprised.

"I may tell you your manners are none of the best."

Beratinsky looked at him.

"Nor your temper," said he, "one would think. Do you still go back to
what I said about your piece of acting? You are a child, Reitzei."

"I do not care about that," said Reitzei, contemptuously, though he was
not speaking the truth: his self-satisfaction had been grievously hurt.
"You put too great a value on your opinion, Beratinsky; it is not
everything that you know about: we will let that pass. But when one goes
into a society as a guest, one expects to be treated as a guest. No
matter; I was among my own countrymen: I was well enough entertained."

"It appears so," said Beratinsky, with a sneer: "I should say too well.
My dear friend Reitzei, I am afraid you have been having a little too
much champagne."

"It was none that you paid for, at all events," was the quick retort.
"No matter; I was among my own countrymen: they are civil; they are not
niggardly."

"They can afford to spend," said the other, laughing sardonically, "out
of the plunder they take from others."

"They have fought for what they have," the other said, hotly. "Your
countrymen--what have they ever done? Have they fought? No; they have
conspired, and then run away."

But Beratinsky was much too cool-blooded a man to get into a quarrel of
this kind; besides, he noticed that Reitzei's speech was occasionally a
little thick.

"I would advise you to go home and get to bed, friend Reitzei," said he.

"Not until I have said something to you, Mr. Beratinsky," said the other
with mock politeness. "I have this to say, that your ways of late have
been a little too uncivil; you have been just rather too insolent, my
good friend. Now I tell you frankly it does not do for one in your
position to be uncivil and to make enemies."

"For one in my position!" Beratinsky repeated, in a tone of raillery.

"You think it is a joke, then, what happened to-night?"

"Oh, that is what you mean; but if that is my position, what other is
yours, friend Reitzei?"

"You pretend not to know. I will tell you: that was got up between you
and Lind; I had nothing to do with it."

"Ho! ho!"

"You may laugh; but take care you do not laugh the other way," said the
younger man, who