show,' Lamont was stating no more than was warranted by fact. For
Ancram had made himself rather more than very much at home, to such an
extent indeed that he might have been the owner of the place. Further,
he had adopted a kind of elder-brotherly tone towards Lamont, and a
patronising one towards Peters: and of this, and of him altogether,
small wonder that both men were already thoroughly sick. Moreover, he
showed not the slightest symptom of moving on.

As a sacrifice on the sacred altar of hospitality Lamont had
conscientiously striven to conceal his dislike for the man, had even
gone out of the way in order to make time pass pleasantly for him, in
pursuance of which idea he had stood from him what he would have stood
from nobody else. All of which Ancram put down to a wrong motive, and
made himself more objectionable still.

"What are your plans, Ancram?" said Lamont, the day after the foregoing
conversation.

"Oh, my dear fellow, it's so jolly here with you I hadn't begun to think
of any."

Lamont's face was stony grim in its effort to repress a frown.

"It brings back dear old Courtland," went on Ancram, watching his host
narrowly. "Now you don't knock up against anyone who knows Courtland
too, every day out here, Lamont?"

"No. I don't know that that's any loss, by the way."

"Not? Now I should have thought--er--that for old acquaintance' sake
you'd--er--but then--er--I was forgetting. What a fool I am."

He little suspected how cordially his listener was agreeing.

"You see, it's this way, Lamont. I came out here to see what I could do
in the gold digging or farming line, or something of that sort. What
could I?"

"Do you want a candid opinion, Ancram?"

"Yes. What could I?"

"Nothing."

The other stared, then laughed unpleasantly.

"You left your things at Pagadi," went on Lamont. "My advice is get
back to Fagadi, pick up your traps--thence, to England."

The other laughed again, still more unpleasantly.

"Meaning that you want me out of the country," he said.

It was Lamont's turn to stare.

"I'm very dense," he said, "but for the life of me I can't see what the
devil interest your being in the country or out of it can have for me."

"We were at Courtland together," rejoined Ancram meaningly.

"A remarkable coincidence no doubt. Still--it doesn't explain
anything."

"I thought perhaps you might find it awkward--er--anyone being here who
was--er--there at that time."