mysterious land. He smiled at the idea of her being "not there."
Ansell, clever as he was, had made a bad blunder. She had more
reality than any other woman in the world.

Mr. Pembroke looked pleased at this boyish enthusiasm. He was
fond of his sister, though he knew her to be full of faults.
"Yes, I envy her," he said. "She has found a worthy helpmeet for
life's journey, I do believe. And though they chafe at the long
engagement, it is a blessing in disguise. They learn to know each
other thoroughly before contracting more intimate ties."

Rickie did not assent. The length of the engagement seemed to him
unspeakably cruel. Here were two people who loved each other, and
they could not marry for years because they had no beastly money.
Not all Herbert's pious skill could make this out a blessing. It
was bad enough being "so rich" at the Silts; here he was more
ashamed of it than ever. In a few weeks he would come of age and
his money be his own. What a pity things were so crookedly
arranged. He did not want money, or at all events he did not want
so much.

"Suppose," he meditated, for he became much worried over this,--
"suppose I had a hundred pounds a year less than I shall have.
Well, I should still have enough. I don't want anything but food,
lodging, clothes, and now and then a railway fare. I haven't any
tastes. I don't collect anything or play games. Books are nice to
have, but after all there is Mudie's, or if it comes to that, the
Free Library. Oh, my profession! I forgot I shall have a
profession. Well, that will leave me with more to spare than
ever." And he supposed away till he lost touch with the world and