The Story of Louie

-room in Lancaster Gate on certain terms, of which terms a dipping sooner or later into reserves of capital is certainly one. It is true that Louie still had capital of which she knew not

capital, nor her wild, resilient spirits, nor her "placeableness" at a glance among those whose possession of some capital may be assumed. All she reckoned as capital was the hundred odd pounds she had placed in a small but sound bank o

quarters with the convenience of having all her belongings within a single door. She was conscious of reasonableness, almost of magnanimity, when she remarked that she didn't mind going up another flight of stairs. The landl

she thought she could spare had cost thrice that amount. The wardrobe dealer who waited upon her offered her five pounds for the

she required, and asking whether Richenda knew of such an one. To this last letter she had a reply by return of post. Richenda proposed the house of her married sister, which was in Sutherland Place, Bayswater. Without prejudice to her choice, Louie took a walk along Sutherland Place, and received an impression of a qu

e talked. He told her it was a pity that Rich had not stuck to her book-keeping; he himself would have been head clerk by this time had he had her thorough practical grounding instead of having had to knock about the world and fend for himself; and he asked her what sort of a villa-building-site Rainham Parva would, in her opinion, make. He added that it was nice to have "the rooms" (he used the plural) let to somebody they knew something about, and then, having omitted to shake hands wi

"Earle and Lord" business once for all. She was

ord may pass-amused; she told herself so, clinching the argument by adding that it was far better to laugh than to cry. She had promised Richenda that she would call and see her Mr. We

he Secretary Bird," then. He shook hands slackly with her, placed a chair for her in one of the bays of a sort of E that was lined with books of reference, and she listened to his soft, dispirited voice and to the clicking of typewriters in an adjoining room. He thanked her for "all her kindnesses" to Richenda, whatever these might have been, and presently a skimpy little woman

ee one another again,

she said to herself with decision: "Thanks-b

he became a student

cted. To put this as briefly as it can be put, she had merely discovered that an affair of atmosphere had become

-well, she did it unnaturally, that was all. The row, scene, or whatever it was going to be, had better be got over; then she could proceed

ence; she had only heard broken repetitions of "Dear old Mops-only for a week or two-knew you weren't without-meant to write, but

aid at last. "Wha

edy Captain had borrowed the quarter's allowance that had been entrusted to him f

boy; don't worry

y minutes the Honourable Emily's head had been buried in the sofa-cushions, and the Trant coa

uie had ended wi

the mother

ay, I won't

must-y

ncle Augustus w

you

d see Uncle

ustn't-you

s be kept from Lord Moone had been brokenly explained. In another

o me," Mrs. Chaffinger

the name. Her mother's face had disappeare

udy of horticulture!" she

s was art,

hown a weak, vindictive gleam. Both pronouns h

ed your

. Her head had gone i

ry long," the devili

I say-for your sake," ha

hers. If you're thinking of wiring to Uncle

way for a few moments; Louie had thought she had heard something about "our damnable women"; then, coming back, Lord Moone had abruptly convened a Committee of Ways and Means. Words like "Imposs

n. "As you say, all these things ma

d him into thinking that the ordering of one young woman who says "I

ily I order that your allowance shall be stopped t

aid, with dancing eyes. Like her father, she

what I'v

don't light that cigar till I've

ered the carriage in which she

seemed to be the Captain's lot to receive and despatch Louie in her comings and goings, and before the carriage had reached the lodge he had stopped it and climbed in. Ordinarily, the whites of the Captain's eyes had yellowish marblings; the yellow had now deepened to the hue of cayenne. He had blown his nose repeated

lowing his nose again, "that was

r eyes to Chaff's bleeding

course it was, you cleve

ll me that, d

y, it isn't worth whil

d of tha

ad invented for Chaff quite a new

s, Mops!--" he had m

one thing, but his

d again. She had remembe

said-Moone? No; you'

ache as she had told him, bringing o

s--" he had dem

oing to tell me

all right, all r

to marrying people, but he can't bully me.... Sorry, Chaff, that w

ied the rest of the time to the statio

at you're doing, won't you, dear?" he ha

thing, and that's all I know anything about. Anyway, the bank will find me-no, you poor old thing, of course I d

-bye,

rned her not to run away wi

holiness of the body, and she had had enough of Trants and Mallard Boises and their masters for a time. The Business School would be as amusing as anywhere else; indeed, she knew of nowhere else. Here she was at last in a London that was not the London of shops and dinners and theatres and drives in the Park. She would have the fun-always the fun-of it. She would go with the Leggats to see Richenda's sisters and that father of hers who had apologised to her for having brought her into the world. She would learn these unfamiliar accents that met her ear, breathe this invigorating if