"Don't you do anything for it? You
really do look uncommonly ill."

"There's no cure for these things but
time and patience. I have been over-working
myself lately, I suppose. Or else I'm
growing old."

"Old! nonsense! You are—why you
must be five years my junior, and I——"

"Oh, you are as sound as a roach, and
as fresh as a daisy. But, my dear fellow,
age cannot always be counted by years. I
feel worn out sometimes. How I hate
this ceaseless grind, grind, grind at the
mill!"

"H'm! Well, for my part, I can never
be thoroughly happy out of harness for long
together. When we take our sea-side holiday
every summer, I am always the first to
get tired of it. I long for what you call
the pounce and parchment."

"Happy you!"

"If you hate it so, why don't you retire
and give up your share of the business to
my Gus? You haven't a tribe of daughters
to provide for. You must be rich enough."

"Rich!" echoed Mr. Frost. "Who shall
say what 'rich' means in these days? And
besides, you know, one always wants a
little more."

He had by this time nearly recovered his
usual mien, and spoke with the self-confident
careless air of superiority which had
never failed to impress Mr. Lovegrove.

"Aye, aye, one knows all that," said the
latter. "Why then, on the whole, you
have—things have not gone so badly with
you, eh?''

Frost gave him a quick and curious
glance. Then his mouth stretched itself in
a forced smile, to which, in the impossibility
of attaining anything like spontaneity, he
communicated an exaggerated expression
of irony. He was conscious of this exaggeration;
but his muscles were not under his
own control.

"Oh yes, they have!" he exclaimed.
"Things have gone very badly indeed with
me. I haven't got what I want by some
ten or fifteen thousand pounds."

"Ten or fifteen thou—by Jove!"

"Well, you know, Lovegrove, every man
has his hobby. Mine has been to die worth
a certain sum. I shan't tell you what sum;
you would be shocked at the extravagance
of my desires. Not having yet reached the
figure I had set myself, I consider that I
have the right to grumble. Consequently
I do grumble—to the world. But," he
added, with a sudden change of manner,
"but between friends and partners, like you
and me, I may say that on the whole—on
the whole, my nest isn't badly feathered."

"I thought it was—I thought so!"
replied Lovegrove, nodding his head with a
kind of sober triumph.

"Ah, but I grumble!"

"Rich men always do. Only, if I were
you, Frost, I wouldn't grumble too much!"

"Eh?"

"Folks might take you at your word.
And as all the world does not know how
rich you want to be—why—don't you
see?"

Mr. Frost laughed a little dry laugh, and
clapped his partner on the shoulder.

"Ah," said he, "God knows there is
wherewithal for plenty of grumbling without
being poor. I'm harassed to death!"

"You have just had young Lockwood
with you. I met him coming out."

"You met him! Did he—did he say
anything?"

"Say anything? He said, 'Good day.'
Oh, and he said, too, that he had been a
good deal put out."

"Put out! He is terribly pig-headed."

"Is he? Well, I rather liked him. I
thought he came out so well in that affair
of proving the time of Lady Tallis's death.
But I always thought you were such a great
friend of his."

"I tried to be. I offered to get him a
fine position with a company abroad. But
there are people whom it is impossible to
befriend. They won't let you."

"Dear me! Then he refused your offer?"

"Yes; I had given him a little time to
consider of it. But he came to-day to—to
say that he would not hear of it. And
that not in the most civil terms, either."

"Oh! So that was what he had been to
see you about?"

"Of course! Did he say that he had
come for anything else?"

"Not at all. I told you what he said.
But talking of companies abroad, Frost, I
wanted to say one word to you. I did
hear——"

"Another time—another time, Lovegrove.
I shall be late as it is. I have an
appointment in the city;" and Mr. Frost
pulled out his watch impatiently.

"Oh, well, I won't detain you. Some
day—some evening, after business hours, I
should like to have a quiet chat with you,
though."

"Of course. Delighted. Whenever you
like."

Mr. Frost hurried off, and threw himself
into the first empty cab that happened to