re was a chance....

Not a glimpse of it was visible. It lay quite hidden behind the
red-brick wall which bounded it, and not a chrysanthemum or a fuchsia
could she see. But her blood froze as, without putting the glasses down,
she ran her eye over such part of the house-wall as rose above the
obstruction. In his drawing-room window on the first floor were seated
two figures. Susan had taken her sables off: it was as if she intended
remaining there for ever, or at least for tea....

CHAPTER VIII

The hippopotamus quarrel over their whisky between Major Flint and
Captain Puffin, which culminated in the challenge and all the shining
sequel, had had the excellent effect of making the united services more
united than ever. They both knew that, had they not severally run away
from the encounter, and, so providentially, met at the station, very
serious consequences might have ensued. Had not both but only one of
them been averse from taking or risking life, the other would surely
have remained in Tilling, and spread disastrous reports about the
bravery of the refugee; while if neither of them had had scruples on the
sacredness of human existence there might have been one if not two
corpses lying on the shining sands. Naturally the fact that they both
had taken the very earliest opportunity of averting an encounter by
flight, made it improbable that any future quarrel would be proceeded
with to violent extremes, but it was much safer to run no risks, and not
let verbal disagreements rise to hippopotamus-pitch again. Consequently
when there was any real danger of such savagery as was implied in
sending challenges, they hastened, by mutual concessions, to climb down
from these perilous places, where loss of balance might possibly occur.
For which of them could be absolutely certain that next time the other
of them might not be more courageous?...

They were coming up from the tram-station one November evening, both
fizzing and fuming a good deal, and the Major was extremely lame, lamer
than Puffin. The rattle of the tram had made argument impossible during
the transit from the links, but they had both in this enforced silence
thought of several smart repartees, supposing that the other made the
requisite remarks to call them out, and on arrival at the Tilling
station they went on at precisely the same point at which they had
broken off on starting from the station by the links.

"Well, I hope I can take a beating in