ole time's
sake."

He was so overcome by the pathos of his own eloquence that he began to
sob brokenly, clinging to the red-haired man. "We alwiz bin mates, ain't
we?" he added, trying to shake hands with him. Fired by his example,
Louis made a grab at Marcella. He had entirely forgotten his fright, his
shame of a moment ago.

"Thass ri', Marsh--Marcella. Kith--kith--kisssh an' be fren's! Ah, oui,
oui, n'est ce pas? Ole Fred--no, no, Ole girl--voulez-vous coucher avec
moi?"

She looked at him, frowning. The unusual words--she had never heard
French words before--worried her: she never afterwards was able to hear
French without an acute sense of discomfort. He was smiling at her with
open mouth and wet eyes. She came quite close to him: he cringed
unconsciously, and then lifted his face, expecting her to kiss him.
Instead, she said in a low voice, close to his ear:

"You asked me to help you, Louis. Do you know the best way to help you?"

"Kith--baisez-moi--ah, oui, oui."

"The best way to help you is to drown you. You're--you're not fit to
live! Oh, you're a perfect idiot!"

She turned and ran down below. Dimly she heard the schoolmaster say,
"Very foolish to talk to an intoxicated man"; she heard the same boy
who had begged her vine leaves singing his passionate love song to the
tinkling music of his guitar and the lapping water. Then she was below
deck, making blindly for her cabin.

At the door of Number 15 she was arrested by Jimmy. He was standing in
the doorway, his head well back, his hands in his trouser pockets.

"Marcella!" he whispered proudly. "Look!"

She made herself conscious of him and looked. On the outer bunk was a
crumpled mass of clothing that was heaving up and down and snoring
loudly.

"He's there all right. I got him up when he wanted to be on the floor.
He pinched my arm fearful. He's very strong, my Daddy is! He didn't
pinch it on purpose, he couldn't help it."

Pushing back the sleeve of his jersey, he showed her a red mark as a
soldier might show his scars.

"Now he's fast asleep. Marcella, isn't he making a funny noise?" he
added with the queerest cross between amusement and puzzlement on his
small face. She suddenly realized what he was saying.

"Oh, you little brave man," she cried, taking him up in her arms and
kissing him. He wriggled down quickly, and stood in the doorway again,
on sentry duty. She forgot to take him with her. She had forgotten
everything save her ins