to have such a long bill
for?" asked Billykins, slipping his arm through Nealie's as they walked
back to the tearooms together.

"Perhaps he did not want to have a long bill, but having it must needs
make the best of it," she answered, with a laugh, then suddenly grew
grave with pity and concern as a man with his right coat sleeve pinned
across his breast passed them at the place where the path grew narrow.
They all knew that for some reason it always made her sad to see a
one-armed man, although she took no especial notice of people who had
been so unfortunate as to lose a leg. Mindful of this fact, Billykins
was trying to divert her attention by talking very fast about what he
had seen; but twisting his head round to see if the maimed stranger was
leaving the gardens or taking the other path which led by a picturesque
bridge round to the other entrance to the tearooms, he was surprised to
see him stop and speak to Mr. Wallis, who was walking behind with Don.

"Did you see that man with one arm, who passed us just now and spoke to
me?" said Mr. Wallis, joining Nealie and walking by her side.

"Yes, I saw him," she replied, her voice rather fainter than usual,
while some of the fine colour died out of her cheeks.

"His is a most interesting and unusual case," went on Mr. Wallis. "He
is one of our very rich men now, and the funny part of it is that he
declares he owes all his prosperity to the loss of his limb, which, but
for a mistake of the doctor's, he need not have lost at all."

"What do you mean?" she asked, stopping short in the path and staring at
him with parted lips, her face so ghastly white that he asked her
anxiously if she felt ill.

"No, no, it is nothing, thank you, but I want to hear about that man. It
sounds most awfully interesting; and won't you tell me what his name
is?" she said, turning such a wistful gaze upon him, that it seemed to
him there must have been some sorrow in her life, although she laughed
in such a cheery, lighthearted way as a rule.

"Reginald Baxter. He is English, and came out to this country about six
or seven years ago. His people are very aristocratic, but poor as church
mice, and they were so terribly upset at his disaster they practically
cast him off; but he seems to have no false pride himself and no
unnecessary notions of his own importance; but he is a veritable king of
finance----"

"What is that?" demanded Don; but Billykins was watching Nealie with a
close scr