THE HAUGHTYSHIRE HUNT. 123 



monarch, slowly melted away, just as Ronald Dennison, who 

 had taken a bed at the ' Duke of Haughtyshh-e's Arms ' for 

 the night, came up, programme in hand. Ronald and Adela 

 were old friends — if truth must be told, old lovers. But in 

 this weary, work-a-day world, where Cupid, however active in 

 the prosecution of a suit, absolutely declines the honour of 

 finding the wherewithal to pay the butcher's bill for any 

 married couple, these two looked into each other's eyes, and 

 sighed, and — recognised the impossible. Nevertheless they 

 were the best of friends — they had acknowledged the unfor- 

 tunate existence of the commercial difficulty — that was all. 



"Yes, Ronny, you can have number nine and fourteen. 

 And sixteen, too, unless — unless — well, you know," and 

 Adela's long black lashes dropped again, as he looked at the 

 state of her programme. Ronny nodded. 



"Business is business, Ronny, eh?" and the girl laughed 

 softly. " If he wants several dances, I shan't be able to spare 

 you Ah, Duke, how are you? " 



And after bowing with a pleasant smile to the mercurial 

 nobleman, Ronald Dennison sauntered away, repeating to 

 himself — 



" ' Business is business,' as sweet Adela says, and I must 

 be looking after mine. I'm not so sure that my own isn't 

 mixed with a good deal of what one might call pleasure, too. 

 They say a man can't be in love with two women at the same 

 time. Don't believe it. I'm in love — or at least I was in 

 love — with Adela, and I'm really feeling very sweet upon that 

 dear little girl, Penelope. ^Yhat a pity she's got such an 

 awful cad of a father ! Never mind that — if he's a cad, she's 

 not a caddess. Old man must have heaps of money ; stuffed 



