rendered with a willing heart. But there!" he sighed- " It may
not be. The Bananas will never know, never realize how- By the
way, who are the Bananas?"

"The Bananas?" said I. "Surely you know the- "

"Weren't at Ascot, were they?"

"Not in the Enclosure. No. The bold, bad Bananas are in many
ways an engaging race. Indeed, some of the manners and customs
which they affect are of a quite peculiar interest. Let us
look, brother, for a moment, at their clothing. At the first
blush- I use the word advisedly- it would seem that, like the
fruit from which they take their name- "

"I thought you'd better do some tricks," said Daphne, throwing a
dark look in my direction.

"Of course," I said; "the very thing. I've always been so good
at tricks."

"I mean it," said Daphne.

"Of course you do. What about the confidence trick? Can any
lady oblige me with a public-house?"

"She means trick-cycling, stupid," said Berry. "Riding
backwards on one wheel while you count the ball-bearings."

"Look here," I said, "if Berry could have come and smoked a