organised the entire English
railway-system, and the dim distant Italian earthquake whose
death-roll of thousands had produced no emotion whatever on a globe
monopolised by one sole interest.

And to-night he had had private early telephonic information of a
naval victory in the North Sea in which big German cruisers had been
chased to their ignominious lairs and one sunk. Christine could not
possibly know of this grand affair, for the Sunday night extras were
not yet on the streets; he had it ready for her, eagerly waiting to
pour it into her delicious lap along with the inexhaustible treasures
of his heart. At that moment he envisaged the victory as a shining
jewel specially created in order to give her a throb of joy.

"It seems they picked up a lot of survivors from the _Blucher_," he
finished his narration, rather proudly.

She retorted, quietly but terribly scornful:

"_Zut_! You English are so naive. Why save them? Why not let them
drown? Do they not deserve to drown? Look what they have done, those
Boches! And you save them! Why did the German ships run away? They had
set a trap--that sees itself--in addition to being cowards. You save
them, and you think you have made a fine gesture; but you are nothing
but simpletons." She shrugged her shoulders in inarticulate disdain.

Christine's attitude towards the war was uncomplicated by any
subtleties. Disregarding all but the utmost spectacular military
events, she devoted her whole soul to hatred of the Germans--and all
the Germans. She believed them to be damnably cleverer than any other
people on earth, and especially than the English. She believed them
to be capable of all villainies whatsoever. She believed every charge
brought against them, never troubling about evidence. She would have
imprisoned on bread and water all Germans and all persons with German
names in England. She was really shocked by the transparent idiocy of
Britons who opposed the retirement of Prince Louis of Battenberg from
the Navy. For weeks she had remained happily in the delusion that
Prince Louis had been shot in the Tower, and when the awakening came
she had instantly decided that the sinister influence of Lord Haldane
and naught else must have saved Prince Louis from a just retribution.
She had a vision of England as overrun with innumerable German
spies who moved freely at inexpressible speed about the country in
high-powered grey automobiles with dazzling headlights, while the
m