y Betty, and the girl's face brightened at the
definiteness of the information.

"Two large ginger-beers--thank you, ma'am," she said, and went off
sharply, leaving them to their amusement.

Whilst waiting, they surveyed the place at their leisure. "I like it
here," exclaimed Lady Betty again. "Look at the old chess player there,
with the bald pate and the eagle's nose. Watch him considering his move,
with his hand hovering in the air, hesitating, yet ready to swoop down
to capture a piece."

But the hand did not capture the piece. Instead, the shoulders shrugged,
an expression of disgust overclouded the face, and the hand descended,
dashing all the pieces from the board with one sweep. A roar of delight
broke from the onlookers, and mingling with it from another part of the
room came a sudden fresh clatter of dominoes, rapidly shuffled.

"What fresh, frank enjoyment! So this is the strenuous commercial life
of London--gingerbeer and dominoes!"

"A strange set of people!" commented Wyndham. "Study these faces--from
each shines a different life. I almost want to put my enormous
accumulation of art theories on the fire, and to paint only human faces
for the rest of my life."

"Wonderful! There seem at least fifty different races here--to judge
from the shapes of the skulls and the varying types of features."

"The thought often strikes me as I watch people in the streets or in
omnibuses," said Wyndham. "No matter how dull or repulsive a human face
at first sight, I believe it can always be painted so as to be
interesting, and that without departing from truth."

The waitress reappeared with their lunch which had been simply chosen so
as to admit of no possible failure, and in their present mood they were
charmed with it. Lady Betty was enraptured by the experience, and
chatted in an undertone, every now and then breaking into a spontaneous
"I am so happy to-day," and flashing him a glance of light and radiance.

They wound up with black coffee, and then the little waitress made out
the account, which, after leaving her demurely astonished with her big
silver tip, Wyndham paid to the nice old man in the box at the top of
the stairs.

"The sun is still shining--look!" she exclaimed.

Wyndham stepped after her into the air gratefully. "It is fresh and
almost summery. Heaven smiles at us. Shall we stroll down this winding
lane? I fancy it must lead to the water-side."

"Hurrah for the winding lane!" she said, an