ep almost as her head touched the pillow. And
in her sleep she lived again that night at the Strattons with Ned and
heard Geisner profess God and condemn her hatred of maternity. "You close
the gates of Life," he said. Taking her hand he led her to where a great
gate stood, of iron, brass bound, and there behind it a great flood of
little children pressed and struggled, dashing and crashing till the
great gates shook and tottered.

"They will break the gates open," she cried to him in anguish.

"Did you deem to alter the unalterable?" he asked. And his voice was
Ned's voice and turning round she saw it was Ned who held her hand. They
stood by the harbour side again and she loved him. Again her whole being
melted into his as he kissed her. Again they were alone in the Universe,
conscious only of an ineffable joy.

* * * * *

"Time to get up, Nellie!" called Mrs. Phillips, who was knocking at the
door. Nellie's working day began again.

CHAPTER VI.

UNEMPLOYED.

After ten minutes' walking Ned reached a broad thoroughfare. Hesitating
for a moment, to get his bearings, he saw across the way one of the cheap
restaurants of which "all meals sixpence" is the symbol and which one
sees open until all sorts of hours. The window was still lighted, so Ned,
parched with thirst, entered to get a cup of coffee. It was a
clean-looking place, enough. He saw on the wall the legend "Clean beds"
as he gulped down his coffee thirstily from the saucer.

"Can you put me up to-night?" he asked, overpowered with a drowsiness
that dulled even his thoughts about Nellie and unwilling to walk on to
his hotel.

"Yes, sir," answered the waiter, a young man who was making preparations
to close for the night. "In half a minute."

Soon a cabman had finished his late midnight meal and departed. But
another passer-by dropped in, who was left over a plate of stew while the
waiter led Ned to a narrow stair at the end of the room, passing round a
screen behind which a stout, gray-haired man slumbered in an arm chair
with all the appearance of being the proprietor. The waiter showed Ned
the way with a lighted match, renewed when burnt out. Ned noticed that
the papered walls and partitions of the stairway and upper floor were
dirty, torn and giving way in patches. From the first landing a dark
narrow passage led towards the front street while three or four ricketty,
cracked doors were crowded at the stairhead. Snoring sounds came from all
qu