l that
we can't. Take the experience of to-day, for example. I admit it has
not been a commonplace day, and yet it has not been altogether
extraordinary. Think of the experiences we have been through just this
day, and how, if they were presented in fiction they would be romantic,
almost unbelievable. And here we are at the close, sitting on a rock,
matter-of-fact people in a matter-of-fact world, accepting everything as
commonplace and unexceptional."

"Not quite that," she said daringly. "I see that you are neither
commonplace nor unexceptional." She spoke with sudden impulse out of the
depth of her sincerity. She had not met a man like this before. In her
mind she fixed him in contrast with Transley, the self-confident
and aggressive, and Linder, the shy and unassertive. None of those
adjectives seemed to fit this new acquaintance. Nevertheless, he
suffered nothing by the contrast.

"If I had been bright enough I would have said that first," he
apologized, "but I got rather carried away in one of my pet theories
about romance. Now my life, I suppose, to many people would seem quite
tame and unromantic, but to me it has been a delightful succession of
somewhat placid adventures. It began in a very orthodox way, in a very
orthodox family. My father, under the guidance, no doubt, of whatever
star governs such lucky affairs, became possessed of a piece of land. In
doing so he contributed to society no service whatever, so far as I
have been able to ascertain. But it so fell about that society, in
considerable numbers, wanted his land to live on, so society made of
my father a wealthy man, and gave him power over many people. Could
anything be more romantic than that? Could the fairy tales of your
childhood surpass it for benevolent irresponsibility?"

"My father has also become wealthy," she said, "although I never thought
of it in that way."

"Yes, but in exchange for his wealth your father has given service to
society; supplied many thousands of steers for hungry people to eat.
That's a different story, but not less romantic.

"Well, to proceed. I was brought up to fit my station in life, whatever
that means. There were just two boys of us, and I was the elder. My
father had become a broker. I believe he had become quite a successful
broker, using the word in its ordinary sense, which denotes the making
of money. You see, he already had too much money, so it was very easy
for him to make more. He wanted me to go