Mr. T. (later, to CULCHARD).  And you’re pretty comfortable at your hotel?  Well, I dunno, after all, what there is to keep us here.  I guess we’ll go down again and stop at Lugano, eh, MAUD?

    [CULCHARD eagerly awaits her reply.

Miss T. I declare!  After bringing all my trunks way up here!  But I’d just as soon move down as not; they’re not unpacked any. (Joy of C.) Seems a pity, too, after engaging rooms here.  And they looked real nice.  Mr. CULCHARD, don’t you and Mr. PODBURY want to come up here and take them?  They’ve a perfectly splendid view, and then we could have yours, you know! (C. cannot conceal his chagrin at this suggestion.) Well, see here, Poppa, we’ll go along and try if we can’t square the hotel-clerk and get our baggage on the cars again, and then we’ll see just how we feel about it.  I’m perfectly indifferent either way.

Culch. (to himself, as he follows).  Can she be really as indifferent as she seems?  I’m afraid she has very little heart!  But if only she can be induced to go back to Lugano ...  She will be at the same hotel—­a great point!  I wish that fellow VAN BOODELER wasn’t coming too, though ...  Not that they’ve settled to come at all yet!...  Still, I fancy she likes the idea ...  She’ll come—­if I don’t appear too anxious about it! [He walks on, trying to whistle carelessly.

* * * * *

WAR IN A FOG.

(A RECORD OF THE NEXT CAMPAIGN OF THE COMING MOLTKE.)

Our Army was now advancing in good order.  We had the “A” Division of the enemy on our right, and the “B” Division on our left, but of course we had lost sight of Division “C.”  It was the morning after we had taken the fortress that had unexpectedly appeared before us on our right front, and had found ourselves to our surprise by the side of a river.  The Chief of my Staff entered my tent whilst I was engaged in studying a map not very successfully.

[Illustration]

“General,” said he, “military music can be heard in the distance, from which I take it it must be the other part of our Army.”  “This is most fortunate,” I replied; “but are they supposed to be in this part of the country?  I fancied they were besieging the enemy’s metropolis.

“So it was reported,” returned my subordinate; “but it appears that, taking the first turning to the right, instead of the second to the left, they lost their way, and instead of capturing the capital, surrounded a harbour, in which, to their astonishment, they found his fleet.”

“I suppose that the movements of Division ‘C’ are shrouded in mystery?”

“They are,” returned the Chief of the Staff, saluting.  “It is presumed that the commander is wandering somewhere near the frontier.  A spy from his Army says that he had entirely lost touch of the country, and was continually asking his way.  But how about our friends, the remainder of our Army, who are now approaching towards us?  What shall we do?”