he first met us this evening. 'One never knows how long these days will
last.' So, monsieur, we must indeed part here?"

They had all come to a standstill at the gangway of the steamer.
Selingman had apparently finished his conversation with his companion. He
hurried Norgate off, and they waved their hands from the deck as a few
minutes later the steamer glided away.

"A most delightful interlude," Selingman declared. "I have thoroughly
enjoyed these few hours. I trust, that every time this steamer meets with
a little accident, it will be at this time of the year and when I am on
my way to England."

"You seem to have friends everywhere," Norgate observed, as he lit a
cigar.

"Young ladies, yes," Selingman admitted. "It chanced that they were both
well-known to me. But who else?"

Norgate made no reply. He felt that his companion was watching him.

"It is something," he remarked, "to find charming young ladies in a
strange place to dine with one."

Selingman smiled broadly.

"If we travelled together often, my young friend," he said, "you would
discover that I have friends everywhere. If I have nothing else to do, I
go out and make a friend. Then, when I revisit that place, it loses its
coldness. There is some one there to welcome me, some one who is glad to