Lord Ronald spoke for the first time. He was very thin, very long,
and very tall. He wore a somewhat unusually high collar, but he was
very carefully, not to say exactly, dressed. His studs and links and
waistcoat buttons were obviously fresh from the Rue de la Paix. The
set of his tie was perfection. His features were not unintelligent,
but his mouth was weak.

"One thing I noticed about Ostend," he remarked, "they charge you a
frightful price for everything. We never got a glass of champagne
there like this."

"I am glad you like it," their host said. "From what you say I don't
imagine that I should care for Ostend. I am not rich enough to
gamble, and as I have lived by the sea all my days, bathing does not
attract me particularly. I think I shall stay at home." "By the by,
where is your home, Mr. De la Borne?" the Princess asked. "You told
me once, but I have forgotten. Some of your English names are so
queer that I cannot even pronounce them, much more remember them."

"I live in a very small village in Norfolk, called Salthouse," Cecil
de la Borne answered. "It is quite close to a small market-town
called Wells, if you know where that is. I don't suppose you do,
though," he added. "It is an out-of-the-way corner of the world."

The Princess shook her head.

"I never heard of it," she said. "I am going to motor through
Norfolk soon, though, and I think that I shall call upon you."

Cecil de la Borne looked up eagerly.