ried somebody with
a double name, somebody well off, somebody older than herself; somebody
apparently of high social standing; and that this somebody had died.

She made no fuss. There was no implication in her demeanour that she
expected to be wept over as a lone widow, or that because she and he had
on a time been betrothed, therefore they could never speak naturally to
each other again. She just talked as if nothing had ever happened to
her, and as if about twenty-four hours had elapsed since she had last
seen him. He felt that she must have picked up this most useful
diplomatic calmness in her contacts with her late husband's class. It
was a valuable lesson to him: "Always behave as if nothing had happened
--no matter what has happened."

To himself he was saying:

"I'm glad I came up in my motor."

He seemed to need something in self-defence against the sudden attack of
all this wealth and all this superior social tact, and the motor-car
served excellently.

"I've been hearing a great deal about you lately," said she with a soft
smile, unobtrusively rearranging a fold of her skirt.

"Well," he replied, "I'm sorry I can't say the same of you."

Slightly perilous perhaps, but still he thought it rather neat.

"Oh!" she said. "You see I've been so much out of England. We were just
talking about holidays. I was saying to Mrs Cotterill they certainly
ought to go to Switzerland this year for a change."

"Yes, Mrs Capron-Smith was just saying--" Mrs Cotterill put in.

(So that was her name.)

"It would be something too lovely!" said Nellie in ecstasy.

Switzerland! Astonishing how with a single word she had marked the gulf
between Bursley people and herself. The Cotterills had never been out of
England. Not merely that, but the Cotterills had never dreamt of going
out of England. Denry had once been to Dieppe, and had come back as
though from Timbuctoo with a traveller's renown. And she talked of
Switzerland easily!

"I suppose it is very jolly," he said.

"Yes," she said, "it's splendid in summer. But, of course, _the_
time is winter, for the sports. Naturally, when you aren't free to take
a bit of a holiday in winter, you must be content with summer, and very
splendid it is. I'm sure you'd enjoy it frightfully, Nell."

"I'm sure I should--frightfully!" Nellie agreed. "I shall speak to
father. I shall make him--"

"Now, Nellie--" her mother warned her.

"Yes, I shall, mother," Nellie insisted.

"Th