e, that she has helped to thwart
him."

Perhaps I ought not to write all this down, for it has the savour of
vanity and conceit, but I do not see how I can well avoid doing so.
There are times when the heart speaks rather than the judgment, and the
squire's heart is very warm towards me; and though I would not doubt
his sincerity it is certain that he is not impartial where I am
concerned.

The Cynic looked pleased. "I quite agree, sir," he said; "Miss Holden
has used her opportunities--not simply those which presented
themselves, but those which she has sought and found, which is higher
service. Hence, I conclude that the policy of her subconscious self
has been justified, and that she is absolved from any charge of
selfishness."

"Really, Philip!" said the vicar's wife, "your eloquence has almost
deprived me of the power of speech, which you will acknowledge is no
mean achievement. I thought I was appointed counsel for the defence
and that you were to prefer the indictment and prove Miss Holden guilty
of some heinous crime. _My_ office has been a sinecure, for a better
piece of special pleading for the defence I have never listened to."

"I must be fair at all costs," he replied; "Miss Holden had no
misgivings, I imagine, when she came here at first. Doubts arose, as
they so often do with the conscientious, when the venture prospered.
The martyr spirit distrusts itself when there is no sign of rack and
faggot. I seek now to reveal Miss Holden to herself."

"You are wonderfully sure of yourself," returned his opponent, "but let
us be fair to our pretensions. If you are for the defence let me be
for the prosecution. Does one serve his country better when he leaves
the thick of the fray to study maps and tactics? If one has the
opportunity to live is it sufficient to vegetate? For every
opportunity of usefulness that Windyridge can offer London can provide
a score, and Miss Holden's lot was cast in London. Is she living her
life? That, I take it, is her problem."

"Yes," I said, "it is something like that."

"I accept your challenge," replied the Cynic, "and I agree that it is
not what we do but what we are capable of doing that counts. But the
most effective workman is not he who undertakes the largest variety of
jobs, but he who puts himself into his work. You speak of vegetating,
and you ask if Miss Holden is living her life. What is life? The man
who rises early and retires late, and spends t