's grip for me he passed outside the shop,
leaving my mother and me staring at each other in great amazement. But
for all my amazement the main thought in my mind was of a certain
picture of a girl's face that lay, shrined in a cedar-wood box, hidden
away in my room upstairs. And so it happened that though my lips were
busy with the name of Lancelot my brain was busy with the name of
Marjorie.

CHAPTER VIII

THE COMPANY AT THE NOBLE ROSE

The next morning I was up betimes; indeed, I do not think that I slept
very much that night, and such sleep as I did have was of a disturbed
sort, peopled with wild sea-dreams of all kinds. In my impatience it
seemed to me as if the time would never come for me to keep my
appointment with Captain Marmaduke; but then, as ever, the hands of the
clock went round their appointed circle, and at half-past eleven I was
at my destination. The Noble Rose stood in the market square. It was a
fine place enough, or seemed so to my eyes then, with its pillared
portal and its great bow-windows at each side, where the gentlemen of
quality loved to sit of fine evenings drinking their ale or their
brandy, and watching the world go by.

In the left-hand window as I came up I saw that the Captain was sitting,
and as I came up he saw me and beckoned me to come inside.

With a beating heart I entered the inn hall, and was making for the
Captain's room when a servant barred my way.

'Now then, where are you posting to?' he asked, with an insolent
good-humour. 'This is a private room, and holds private company.'

'I know that,' I answered, 'but it holds a friend of mine, whom I want
to see and who wants to see me.'

The man laughed rudely. 'Very likely,' he said, 'that the company in the
Dolphin are friends of yours,' and then, as I was still pressing
forward, he put out his hand as if to stay me.

This angered me; and taking the knave by the collar, I swung him aside
so briskly that he went staggering across the hall and brought up
ruefully humped against a settle. Before he could come at me again the
door of the Dolphin opened, and Captain Marmaduke appeared upon the
threshold. He looked in some astonishment from the rogue scowling on the
settle to me flushed with anger.

'Heyday, lad,' he said, 'are you having a bout of fisticuffs to keep
your hand in?'

'This fellow,' I said, 'tried to hinder me from entering yonder room,
and I did but push him aside out of my path.'

'Hum!' said