You're delightful, you're wonderful, and I'm intensely curious to hear you," the young man pursued.

"Were we absolutely odious ?" Before his guest's puzzled, finally almost pained face, such an air of appreciating so much candour, yet of looking askance at so much freedom, he could only try to smooth the way and light the subject.

"You see we don't in the least know where we are.

We're lost--and you find us." Mr.Longdon, as he spoke, had prepared at last really to go, reaching the door with a manner that denoted, however, by no means so much satiety as an attention that felt itself positively too agitated.

Vanderbank had helped him on with the Inverness cape and for an instant detained him by it.