e.
He was listening with an air of engrossed attention to his companion's
impressive remarks. Norgate, raising himself upon his elbow, no longer
had any doubts. The man stretched upon his back on the sand, partly
hidden from sight by a little grass-grown undulation, was his late
travelling companion.

"You do well, my dear Marquis, believe me!" the latter exclaimed.
"Property in Belgium is valuable to-day. Take my advice. Sell. There are
so many places where one may live, where the climate is better for a man
of your constitution."

"That is all very well," his companion replied querulously, "but remember
that Belgium, after all, is my country. My chateau and estates came to me
by inheritance. Notwithstanding the frequent intermarriages of my family
with the aristocracy of your country, I am still a Belgian."

"Ah! but, my dear friend," Selingman protested, "you are more than a
Belgian, more than a man of local nationality. You are a citizen of the
world of intelligence. You are able to see the truth. The days are coming
when small states may exist no longer without the all-protecting arm of a
more powerful country. I say no more than this. The position of Belgium
is artificial. Of her own will, or of necessity, she must soon become
merged in the onward flow of mightier nations."

"What about Holland, then?"

"Holland, too," Selingman continued, "knows the truth. She knows very
well that the limit of her days as an independent kingdom is almost
reached. The Power which has absorbed the states of Prussia into one
mighty empire, pauses only to take breath. There are many signs--"

"But, my worthy friend," the other man interrupted irritably, "you must
take into consideration the fact that Belgium is in a different position.
Our existence as a separate kingdom might certainly be threatened by
Germany, but all that has been foreseen. Our neutrality is guaranteed.
Your country has pledged its honour to maintain it, side by side with
France and England. What have we to fear, then?"

"You have to fear, Marquis," Selingman replied ponderously, "the
inevitable laws which direct the progress of nations. Treaties solemnly
subscribed to in one generation become worthless as time passes and
conditions change."

"But I do not understand you there!" the other man exclaimed. "What you
say sounds to me like a reflection upon the honour of your country. Do
you mean to insinuate that she would possibly--that she would ever for a