hout comment.

A fear crossed his mind. "Don't misunderstand it," he said hastily.
"You know that point was settled months ago. There's no question of
going back for me now--and I'm glad of it. I never want to see England
again. But it gave me a lot to think about--how the staying here was to
be managed, and things like that."

He was conscious of becoming somewhat wordy; and as she did not
respond, his uneasiness grew. In his anxiety to make her think as he
did, he clasped his hand over hers.

"I needn't say again, need I, darling, what the past weeks have meant
to me? I'm so grateful to you for them that I could only prove it with
years of my life. But--and don't misunderstand this either, or think I
don't love you more now than ever before--you know I do. But, look at
it as we will, those weeks were play--glorious play, worth half one's
existence, but still only play. They couldn't last for ever. Now we've
come back, and we have to face work and the workaday world--you see
what I mean, I'm sure?"

There was a note of entreaty in his voice. As she still kept silence,
he gave his whole strength to demolishing the mute opposition he felt
in her.

"From now on, dear, we must make up our minds to be two very sensible
people. I've an enormous amount of work to get through, in the coming
months. And at Easter, I shall probably be thrown on my own resources.
But I'll fight my way somehow--here, beside you. We'll live our own
life. Just you and I.--Let me tell you what I propose to do,"--and
here, he laid before her, in their entirety, his plans for winning over
Schwarz, for gaining a foothold, and for making a modest income. "A
good PRUFUNG," he concluded, "and I'll be able to get anything I want
out of him. In the meantime, I've got to make a decent job next month
of the trio--I'm pretty well in his black books, I can guess, for going
off as I did in July. I must work as I've never done before. Each
single day must be mapped out, and nothing allowed to interfere. It's
an undertaking; but you'll help me, won't you, darling?--as only you
can. I've let things go, far too much--I see it now. But it was
impossible--frankly, I didn't care. I only wanted you. Now, it will ...
it must be different. The unrest is gone; you belong to me, and I to
you. We are sure of each other."

"Oh, it's stifling! There's no air in the room."

She rose from his side, and went to the open window, where she stood
with her back to him. As a r