ble of his kindness in affording her this blissful relief; for she believed it was en

reat many ball

he said. 'I am

ommand about him, young as he was? No doubt he held far to

nothing but parties and balls, along with a great deal of mischief. That is what one reads, you know, about the young gentlemen-al

ace had brightened; she rega

dly for the middy since then. It isn't all beer and skittles now. Nowadays, the poor

at is that?' she said,

anship, and mathematics; then, to finish up with, the unhappy youth has to look forward to a

ied them off easily, triumphantly? What was there in his manner, or the shape of his forehead, or his expre

ke of Somerset, and the whole of them,-so we set to work to chaff the waiters in unknown tongues. Anything more patient or friendly than the conduct of these amiable creatures I never saw. They entirely entered into the spirit of the thing, and grinned and nodded in high glee when we inquired about their mothers and sisters-in English, of course; and then we tried bad French on them, and Welsh, with a touch of Lancashire thrown in; and then they grinned all the more, and shrugged their shoulders. My chum Greville was the worst, I think; he kept asking for all sorts of ridiculous things, and was very angry when he couldn't get them.

s was by this time; 'weren't you afraid the French might be t

said he, with a laugh, 'than we used to tak

a-sick?' sh

as as good as seven French ones. But it was quite true; and the explanation is simple enough. The fact was that the English kept such a strict blockade of the French ports that the French sailors never had a proper chance of finding their sea legs. They never got out. W

way into the murmuring and amorphous crowd. Miss Nan knew very well that she ought now to return to her mamma; but how was she to break in upon this story? When one has already begun to tell yo

laughed in her low, quiet way. These two seemed very friendly, and heedless of what was going on around them; and might, in fact, have continued talking for a quite indefinite time had not, all of a sudden, Charley Stratherne come up, followed by a tall man with a long

cing men; there won't b

oom; the next second he was off. Then the young lieutenant managed to make his way through the crowd to the door; and as

empty supper-room, and sat down. One of the s

e, 'could you get m

and he went off and speedil

self in this long chamber, apparently deeply absorbed in the evening's new

eering her into some little side bay, where they came slowly to rest by mere friction, or else landed her right in the middle of the room, wh

resford, with an amused l

much did I get

hat elephant of a man bumped me a

verybody at the same time, and invariably putting his hand on the

artner? Did he amuse you? Did he compliment you on the r

any hesitation or embarrassment, 'I think he is very

oung fellow-a smart you

ye on him for

arked Nan, with a wise

e On

at her, and then

hree Ones? He had got his certificates before he was

her a st

we're going to do with Frank King to-morrow; we're going to give him the command

I suppose they will be

p you talking; I suppose you're engaged for every dance. Mind you are down at su

hed to say-'Oh, Sir George, I would rather talk to you than have

r some considerable time. At last

n't wonder he has gone home. But it would have been nice if I had had the