ust get something to do," he broke out presently. "I am an idle
scoundrel. I ought to have thought of this before. I have been a selfish
fool. I wanted to be with you all day...."

He stopped, looking at her white face. Suddenly he came and kissed her
and the little face that nestled against her breast.

"It's all right, dear," he said, standing over her; "you won't be lonely
now--now Dings is beginning to talk to you. And I can soon get something
to do, you know. Soon.... Easily.... It's only a shock at first. But it
will come all right. It's sure to come right. I will go out again as
soon as I have rested, and find what can be done. For the present it's
hard to think of anything...."

"It would be hard to leave these rooms," said Elizabeth; "but----"

"There won't be any need of that--trust me."

"They are expensive."

Denton waved that aside. He began talking of the work he could do. He
was not very explicit what it would be; but he was quite sure that there
was something to keep them comfortably in the happy middle class, whose
way of life was the only one they knew.

"There are three-and-thirty million people in London," he said: "some of
them _must_ have need of me."

"Some _must_."

"The trouble is ... Well--Bindon, that brown little old man your father
wanted you to marry. He's an important person.... I can't go back to my
flying-stage work, because he is now a Commissioner of the Flying Stage
Clerks."

"I didn't know that," said Elizabeth.

"He was made that in the last few weeks ... or things would be easy
enough, for they liked me on the flying stage. But there's dozens of
other things to be done--dozens. Don't you worry, dear. I'll rest a
little while, and then we'll dine, and then I'll start on my rounds. I
know lots of people--lots."

So they rested, and then they went to the public dining-room and dined,
and then he started on his search for employment. But they soon realised
that in the matter of one convenience the world was just as badly off as
it had ever been, and that was a nice, secure, honourable, remunerative
employment, leaving ample leisure for the private life, and demanding no
special ability, no violent exertion nor risk, and no sacrifice of any
sort for its attainment. He evolved a number of brilliant projects, and
spent many days hurrying from one part of the enormous city to another
in search of influential friends; and all his influential friends were
glad to see him, and