ch courage as hers must inevitably be accompanied by
aggressiveness, a harsh insistence on one's point of view, and worst of
all, a surrender of social charm and ease and the kindly regard of one's
friends. "I couldn't do that," he thought to himself. It was easy enough
to sneer at such people, to call them "cranks," but indisputably they
had the heroic spirit, the will to endure obloquy for their opinions. "I
suppose," he reflected, "the reason why one feels so angry with such
people is partly that nine times out of ten they're in the right, and
partly that ten times out of ten they've got the pluck we haven't got!"
And he remembered that Witterton, a journalist whom he had met at the
office of the _Morning Record_, had climbed on to the plinth in
Trafalgar Square during the Boer War and made a speech in denunciation
of Chamberlain and the Rand lords, and had been badly mauled by the mob.
"By God, that's courage!" he murmured. That was the sort of person
Rachel was. He could see her opposing herself to mobs, but he could not
see himself doing so. Probably, he thought, he would be on the fringe of
the crowd, mildly deprecating violence and tactlessness....

He came out of his ruminations to hear Mrs. Graham telling Rachel how
pleased she was to hear that Roger and she were engaged. "My dear," she
said, "I'm very glad!" and then she kissed Rachel.

"Come here, Roger," she added, and when he had ambled awkwardly up to
her, she took his head in her hands and kissed him too....

"I've a jolly good mind to get engaged myself," said Gilbert.

"Well, why don't you?" Mrs. Graham retorted.

"I would, only I keep on forgetting about it," he answered. "Couldn't
you kiss me 'Good-luck' to my play?"

"I could," she replied, and kissed him.

Then they insisted that she should kiss them all, and she did as they
insisted. She was very gracious and very charming and her eyes were
bright with her pleasure in their youth and spirits ... so bright that
presently she cried a little ... and then they all talked quickly and
kicked one another's shins under the table in order to enforce tactful
behaviour.

2

They sat in one of the two large boxes of the Pall Mall Theatre. Gilbert
was nervous and restless, and after the play began, he retreated to the
back of the box and sat down in a corner.

"What's up, Gilbert?" Henry whispered to him. "Are you ill?"

"Ill!" Gilbert exclaimed, looking up at Henry with a whimsical smile.
"Man,