'm
not trying Fanny; on the contrary, she's trying me."

"What, already?" asked Dick with exaggerated apprehension. "What'll it be
when you're married?"

"Ah," said Morewood, "now what is it when you're married? Does any duly
qualified person wish to answer the question?" His mischievous glance
rested again on May Quisante.

"Oh, marriage is all right," said Dick, raising his voice to allow his
wife to hear. "At least it's not so bad as things go in this world. It's
giving a shilling and getting back eleven-pence."

There was a little murmur of applause. "I declare every married person at
the table seems to endorse the opinion," said Marchmont with a laugh.
"We'll keep our shillings, I think, Morewood."

"You'd better wait till somebody offers you change," advised Lady
Richard.

"Meanwhile we've had an admirable expert opinion," said Marchmont.

"Which we believe," added Morewood, "as implicitly as we do in the
excellence of the Alethea Printing Press."

"Hallo, are you in it too?" cried Dick. "You see we're all disciples," he
added to May. She smiled slightly and turned to Jimmy Benyon who was by
her, as though to speak to him; but Morewood's voice cut across her
remark.

"No, I'm not. I'm a sceptic there," he said.

"Oh, well, you don't know anything about it," Dick assured him placidly.
If plain-speaking were the order of the day, the Benyon family could hold
their own.

"I bet he hasn't read the prospectus," said Jimmy.

"Couldn't understand it, if he had," added Dick, after a comforting gulp
of champagne.

"You're really splendid people to be in with," said May, looking
gratefully from one brother to the other. They were so staunch, and alas,
how had they been treated!

For a moment Morewood said nothing; he sat smiling maliciously.

"Shall I give my authority?" he asked. "It won't do you any harm if I do,
because I can't call him to give evidence."

"We had all the best authorities," said Dick Benyon, "as you'd know if
you'd read the prospectus."

"Hang the prospectus! What's the good of reading a man's puff of his own
wares? But I'm certain you hadn't one authority."

"Well, who's your authority?" asked Jimmy, with a contempt that he took
no trouble to conceal.

"What he said was confidential, you know----"

"Oh, you won't get out of it like that. We're all friends here. Fire
away."

Thus exhorted, and indeed nothing loth--for he had not read the prospectus
and knew not the full exten