pressing her to him, and kissing her
twice on the cheek.

"No, no!" cried she, hysterically, as though to something she was
answering; and then, dashing away, she rushed from the room, and Tony
could hear her door shut and locked as she passed in.

"How changed from what she used to be!" muttered he, as he went his way;
"I scarcely can believe she is the same! And, after all, what light has
she thrown on the difficulty I put before her? Or was it that I did not
place the matter as clearly as I might? Was I too guarded, or was I too
vague? Well, well. I remember the time when, no matter how stupid _I_
was, she would soon have found out my meaning! What a dreary thing
that life of a governess must be, when it could reduce one so quick of
apprehension and so ready-witted as she was to such a state as this! Oh,
is she not changed!" And this was the burden of his musings as he wended
his way towards home.

CHAPTER XXXV. SIR ARTHUR ON LIFE AND THE WORLD IN GENERAL

"Here it is at last, mother," said Tony, holding up the "despatch" as he
entered the cottage.

"The order for the examination, Tony!" said she, as she turned pale.

"No, but the order to do without it, mother dear!--the order for Anthony
Butler to report himself for service, without any other test than his
readiness to go wherever they want to send him. It seems that there 's a
row somewhere--or several rows--just now. Heaven bless the fellows that
got them up, for it gives them no time at the Office to go into any
impertinent inquiries as to one's French, or decimal fractions, or the
other qualifications deemed essential to carrying a letter-bag, and so
they 've sent for me to go off to Japan."

"To Japan, Tony,--to Japan?"

"I don't mean positively to Japan, for Skeffy says it might be Taganrog,
or Timbuctoo, or Tamboff, or some other half-known place. But no matter,
mother; it 's so much a mile, and something besides, per day; and the
short and long of it is, I am to show myself on Tuesday, the 9th, at
Downing Street, there to be dealt with as the law may direct."

"It's a hasty summons, my poor Tony--"

"It might be worse, mother. What would we say to it if it were, 'Come up
and be examined'? I think I 'm a good-tempered fellow; but I declare to
you frankly, if one of those 'Dons' were to put a question to me that
I could n't answer,--and I 'm afraid it would not be easy to put any
other,--I 'd find it very hard not to knock him down! I mean, of