sage I made it very clear that I
should expect him to stick to our bargain, and I have an impression
that he will."

"He may. But, look here, my dear fellow,"--Jack now had the decency to
lower his voice,--"have you no red blood in your veins? Mercedes--the
real Mercedes--nearly restored to health and spirits by her run with
us through splendid air and scenery, is to unveil her charms this
evening at dinner. You have irreverently nicknamed her the Perpetual
Mushroom. To-night, you will see--but you don't deserve to be told
what you will see, if you haven't the curiosity to find out at the
first opportunity for yourself."

"Second opportunities, like second thoughts, are better than first,"
said I. "I shall he delighted to take the second opportunity of
meeting Miss Mercedes--by the way, what _is_ her other name? You
always seemed to take it for granted that I knew; but if it was ever
mentioned in the summer, I've forgotten."

"You should be ashamed to admit that you could deliberately and
stoically forget a charming young lady's name, and you don't deserve
to have your memory jogged. You shall be told the heiress's name when
you meet her, and not before."

"I must possess my soul in patience until to-morrow, then," I replied,
"for to me one pal in the bush is worth twenty heiresses in the hand,
and I am now going out to scour the said bush."

"Which means the Casino, no doubt."

"I shall stroll in, when I've got rid of the dust. The Rooms are the
place to come across people."

"All right, gang your ain gait, my son, and I suppose I must wish you
luck. Daresay we shall see each other before bedtime."

A few hours later, I was walking down through the gardens, on my way
to the Casino. The young grass, sown last month, had already become
green velvet, and the flowers were as fresh as if they had been
created an hour ago. The air smelled of La France roses and orange
blossoms, though I saw neither. Some pretty Austrian girls were
walking about in muslin frocks and gauzy hats, though by this time,
in England, women were putting on their fur boas in deference to
autumn; and a few days ago I had been lost in a snowstorm on a
middle-sized mountain of Savoie.

As I drew near to the big white Casino, strains of music came to me
from the terrace, and thinking that the Boy might be there listening
to the band, I went through the tunnel and came out on the beautiful
flower-decked plateau overhanging the sea. Out of seaso