er light attacks as to be unable to answer.

Mr. Merton looked on, amused at their wordy conflicts; he knew that
nothing does a boy so much good and so softens his manner as friendly
intercourse with a well-read girl of about his own age, and undoubtedly
Alice did almost as much towards preparing Jack's manner for his future
career as her father had done towards preparing his mind.

As time went on Jack often met Mr. Merton's colleagues, and other
gentlemen who came in in the evening. He was always introduced as "my
young friend Simpson," with the aside, "a remarkably clever young
fellow," and most of those who met him supposed him to be a pupil of the
professor's.

Mr. Merton had, within a few months of his arrival at Birmingham, five
or six young men to prepare for Cambridge. None of them resided in the
house, but after Jack had become thoroughly accustomed to the position,
Mr. Merton invited them, as well as a party of ladies and gentlemen, to
the house on one of Jack's Saturday evenings.

Jack, upon hearing that a number of friends were coming in the evening,
made an excuse to go into the town, and took his black bag with him.

Alice had already wondered over the matter.

"They will all be in dress, papa. Jack will feel awkward among them."

"He is only eighteen, my dear, and it will not matter his not being in
evening dress. Jack will not feel awkward."

Alice, was, however, very pleased as well as surprised when, upon coming
down dressed into the drawing-room, she found him in full evening dress
chatting quietly with her father and two newly arrived guests. Jack
would not have been awkward, but he would certainly have been
uncomfortable had he not been dressed as were the others, for of all
things he hated being different to other people.

He looked at Alice in a pretty pink muslin dress of fashionable make
with a surprise as great as that with which she had glanced at him, for
he had never before seen a lady in full evening dress.

Presently he said to her quietly, "I know I never say the right thing,
Miss Merton, and I daresay it is quite wrong for me to express any
personal opinions, but you do look--"

"No, Jack; that is quite the wrong thing to say. You may say, Miss
Merton, your dress is a most becoming one, although even that you could
not be allowed to say except to some one with whom you are very
intimate. There are as many various shades of compliment as there are of
intimacy. A brother may s