“A—­ er—­ a slight token of my regard, don’t you know,” said William Philander, with a flourish.

“So kind of you, Mr. Tubbs!” The girl gazed hungrily at the box.  “Shall I open it now?”

“If you wish to,” answered the dudish student, gallantly.

“I will—­ and you shall have a share of the candy,” said the young lady, and quickly drew off the ribbon and paper.  “Oh, my, how perfectly delicious!” she murmured.  “Oh, Mr. Tubbs, how could you guess just the kind I like!”

“Help yourself, my dear Miss Ruggles,” said Tubbs, as the box was held out.  “Ladies first, don’t you know,” and he smiled sweetly.

She took a candy and he did likewise, and as they ate they talked of various things.  Then the box was passed back and forth.

“Yes, I came to see if you would go to the—­ er—­ to the—­ er——­” stammered William Philander, and then he came to a dead halt.  “Oh, my tooth!” he gasped, suddenly.

“What is it, Mr. Tubbs?”

“I—­ er—­ I really think I’ve broken one of my—­ er—­ teeth, don’t you know!” gasped the stylish student.  “Oh, dear, that candy is awfully hard!”

“I didn’t find it so, Mr. Tubbs.  Here, try another piece,” answered the young lady, and helped both him and herself.  “As you were going to say,” she added, with a smile.  “Was it that concert that——­” She, too, stopped short.  “Oh, my!” she gasped.

“Wha—­ what is it?” stammered William Philander.

“This piece of candy I have!  It tastes awfully queer!”

“So does this piece I have!” groaned the dudish student.

“Oh, Mr. Tubbs, what kind of candy is it anyway?  My teeth are—­ are stuck fast in it!”

At this moment the aunt of the young lady came in.  She looked in wonder at the others, for both were making wry faces.

“It’s the candy, Aunt Mabel!” cried the young lady.  “It—­ it tastes so queer!”

“Ha!  Let me see that box?” exclaimed the aunt, who was a portly person.  “I read in the newspaper only yesterday of some folks being poisoned by eating cheap candy.”  And she looked severely at poor Tubbs.

“This is—­ er—­ not cheap candy, my dear Mrs. Garlett,” spluttered William Philander.  “It is some of the best to be had in Ashton, I assure you.”

By this time the lady had taken something from the box and was sampling it.  As it chanced to be a piece of the rubber band she made slow progress in chewing it.

“I never saw such candy!” she declared, with vigor.  She took another piece.  “That was all right,” she added, a moment later.  “But this piece!  Why, I declare, it tastes like wax!  And it is wax, too,” she continued, inspecting the lump more closely.

“Wax!” gasped poor William Philander, hollowly.

“Yes, wax, Mr. Tubbs.”

“Oh, you must be mistaken, my dear Mrs. Garlett!”

“Humph!  I think I know wax when I see it.  And this is rubber—­ nothing but rubber!”