Chapter XXX: Aftermath of Storm

The cinders fell with a clatter among the pistons and the fly-wheels, and Nettle Jimpson, too absorbed in watching results, forgot to notice that the ruffian on the bridge had not fired a second shot at her. For almost immediately there began a jarring and a scrunching in the engines which told that the delicate mechanism was trying to assimilate in its vitals the rough food she had fed it with, and found it indigestible. Cold-blooded murder was quite in Mr. Cheeseman's line as a preventive, equally so as a cure had that been possible. But those ominous sounds were eloquent of mischief done, and he was not the man to run his neck into a noose for the empty pleasure of revenge.

Three feeble revolutions followed, and then the engines stopped altogether, and the _Cobra_, quickly exhausting the way on her, lay like a log on the oily swell. Brant came running from his cabin, and at the foot of the bridge stairs met Cheeseman, who had descended, and the chief engineer, who had hurried up from below.

"How long will it take to pick the stuff out?" asked Brant, when he had been informed of what had happened.

"It will be from two to three hours before we can get a move on the ship," was the engineer's verdict. "A lot of the muck has got into the governors and cylinders. If I hadn't shut off steam sharp there'd have been such a mix up that the steamer would have had to dock for repairs."

This meant that the _Snipe_ would be up with them in twenty minutes. Brant cocked a wicked eye at the oncoming destroyer, and then began to walk to where Nettle was still standing by the engine-room hatch. So diabolical was the menace on the horrible hairless face that the girl was fascinated as by a snake, and could not fly, though she knew that her fate was trembling in the balance. Brant addressed her very quietly.

"Will you jump overboard yourself, or shall I shoot you first and then throw you over?" he said, drawing a vicious Derringer from his hip.

Unflinchingly Nettle returned his stare. She even laughed a little. "I am certainly not going to commit the crime of suicide to save you from committing the crime of murder. I don't love you well enough for that," she replied.

And then the swift thought came to her that the wretch meant to slake his thirst for revenge and trust to his cunning to avoid the penalty for it. When the warship's men boarded the _Cobra_ he would have to explain the kidnapping of Violet Maynard and his treatment of Chermside as best he could, and he would doubtless have to suffer for it. But he had been guilty of no capital offence against them, and might contrive to throw much of the blame on other shoulders.

"I'll give you thirty seconds to reconsider that decision," said Brant, cocking and raising the pistol.

"It will be about long enough for you to reconsider yours," Nettle rejoined promptly. "You are relying on the crew of that destroyer not being aware that there are two women on board your ship. You think that if they saw me on deck they will have taken me for Miss Maynard, and that with her rescue assured they will ask no questions about me."

"And they won't," said Brant, though there was a note of interrogation in the assertion. "How are they to know that I shipped a d----d wild-cat at Weymouth?"

"That is the hole you have dug for yourself to tumble into," returned Miss Nettle Jimpson sweetly. "You thought you were being funny at my expense in allowing the torpedo-boat to nearly catch you, but you overdid your joke, Captain Brant. That ship is the _Snipe_, with my young man as acting gunner. You let her come so close that we were blowing kisses to each other half an hour ago. When my Ned steps on to your deck five minutes hence he'll ask for me, if he's still the affectionate youth I've educated him into. And you won't be able to gammon him with any yarn about my having jumped overboard. He knows jolly well I'm not built that way."

Brant looked up at her, mouthing and gibbering; then he spat on the deck, and, turning away without a word, flung his Derringer over the rail into the sea.

And the helpless _Cobra_, her poison-fangs drawn, lay on the swell like a wilted weed while the _Snipe_, vomiting black fury from her three funnels, swooped down.

* * * * *

Mr. Montague Maynard passed the decanter, and beamed upon his guests--Mr. Vernon Mallory and Reggie Beauchamp. Through the open window they could catch glimpses of Leslie Chermside, who had taken a lover's privilege to leave the dessert table early and join Violet on the Manor House lawn. Somewhere out there in the twilight there were also Aunt Sarah and Enid Mallory, the elder lady listening for about the twentieth time to the adventure of the younger in the grotto at The Hut--an adventure which had been the direct cause of her great-niece's rescue.

"Roughly speaking, then, this is what you make of it," Mr. Maynard was saying. "From first to last Levison's murder was a job put up by Travers Nugent in order to render my future son-in-law the bait for getting Violet on to the _Cobra_?"

"That is established from the mouth of Pierre Legros, from Brant's brutal frankness to Violet, and by Nugent's evident intention to kill Sergeant Bruce, Legros and myself the other night," replied Mr. Mallory. "He would not have embarked on wholesale murder, which must have been brought home to him, unless he had known that the game was up, and that his only resource was flight."

"Yes, that is all clear enough," the Birmingham magnate assented. "But what I am most concerned with, as I like the chap and he is going to marry my daughter, is Chermside's extraordinary conduct in being frightened into bolting on to that infernal steamer. There seems to be no rhyme or reason to it, he being obviously innocent of the crime. I shouldn't like to think that Violet was going to marry a fool or a coward."

The old civil servant made patterns on his plate with walnut shells before replying. He was thinking of an interview he had had with Leslie Chermside that morning, at which the young ex-Lancer had made full confession to him of his early implication in the plot, and had sought advice as to what as a man of honour he ought to do. Mr. Mallory, after very earnest consideration, had given that advice, and it was in sustentation of it that he now replied--

"My view is this--that Chermside was duped by Nugent into becoming an accomplice in this atrocious scheme, without in the least understanding the enormity of the offence he was to aid, that he discovered how and for what a vile purpose he had been duped, and that in the meanwhile, having fallen in love with your daughter, he was terrified lest his complicity should come out. Nugent then deliberately engineered the murder of Levison so that he might play upon Chermside's fear--not of the legal consequences of arrest for murder, but of the revelations that would follow, Levison, I have reason to believe, having played a minor part in the conspiracy. The affair fell out exactly as Nugent anticipated, and Chermside lost his head and ran away--with the results we know."

Montague Maynard puckered his brows in a judicial frown quite unsuitable to his jovial features. But the cloud passed.

"Yes," he exclaimed, "the boy has acted straight enough, though he would have been wiser to put us on our guard instead of trusting that Nugent had abandoned the plot. He tells me, however, that he intended to write me about it at the first opportunity, and I have not found him other than truthful. I remember when I tackled him first about Violet, he confessed that the yacht, waiting to take him on that accursed cruise, and credited to him by local gossip, was not his property. No false pretence about that."

"I am sure he tried to act for the best in a very difficult position," Mr. Mallory interposed quietly.

"And his behaviour on the _Cobra_ in tackling, single-handed and unarmed, the crew of the launch, shows he's got grit," Maynard continued warmly. "I reckon we'll leave it at that. He has tried to chuck away his life to save Vi; he has suffered the tortures of the damned for her, and as he's good enough for her, he shall be good enough for me."

Mr. Mallory heaved a sigh of content, which, coming from him, was not of the kind that is noticed. He had achieved his purpose without betraying a confidence.

"You arranged the hushing-up process deuced cleverly," the screw manufacturer went on. "All that transpired at the adjourned inquest on Levison, I understand, and at those on Legros and Nugent, was that Nugent, had been engaged in a plot to kidnap Violet, and that it had failed. Some idiot in Parliament might have raised Cain if Bhagwan Singh's connection with it had been made public."

Mr. Mallory smiled. "I was certainly careful not to let the worthy sergeant into the secret of the Maharajah's iniquity," he said. "But we have chiefly Beauchamp here to thank for the veil we have been able to draw over the inner history of the conspiracy. His prompt action in putting to sea, and his judicious handling of Brant after boarding the _Cobra_, crowned my humble efforts with success. The idea of letting Brant and his crew of cut-throats go scot-free, with the advice to finish their voyage and demand payment and explanations from Bhagwan Singh, was a masterpiece which augurs well for our young friend's career. One can imagine the kind of payment that the Maharajah will mete out when he gets that pack of failures into his dominions."

"I had to handle the wicked little demon judiciously to save my own skin," said Reggie modestly. "I had no orders to rove the seas in search of lost heiresses or eloping couples, and my career might have been nipped in the bud if I'd taken the _Cobra_ into Devonport as a prize. My lords of the Admiralty are not kind to independent action by junior officers, and if I had pleaded that I had been ordered to sea by Enid it would hardly have mended matters. But as we are apportioning rewards and punishments, we mustn't forget the real heroine of the piece--Nettle Jimpson, my gunner's best girl. If she hadn't fired that bucketful of cinders into the engines we shouldn't be all sitting here shaking hands with ourselves to-night."

Montague Maynard filled his glass and drained it incontinently. "Grigg and Wynter, drapers, of Weymouth, ceased to exist as a firm to-day," he remarked oracularly.

"As to how?" demanded Reggie, genuinely puzzled.

"I have bought their business as a little reward for Miss Jimpson," the man of money replied. "She will have the transfer as soon as ever my lawyers can put it through."

"Then you've done his gracious Majesty an ill turn in losing him the most promising acting-gunner in the service," said Reggie. "Ned Parsons, as his wife's principal shop-walker, will be a standing disgrace to you, Mr. Maynard, to the end of your days. His only prospect of safety is that his future spouse is not, from what I saw of her, the sort of person to tolerate flirtations with the girls behind the counter. But while you are making everybody happy with that magic touch of yours, sir, what are you doing for Mr. Lazarus Lowch, the champion juryman. I hear that he was foreman at the other two inquests, as well as finishing up Levison."

The millionaire laughed boisterously--so boisterously that it devolved upon Mr. Mallory to explain.

"Mr. Lazarus Lowch is as tame as a sucking dove," he said, with mock solemnity. "He has had his claws clipped and has been taken into custody by that sly little mischief-maker, Mademoiselle Louise Aubin."

"Good Lord!" cried Reggie. "Miss Maynard's maid?"

"Yes; she is a very astute young lady, and the only actor in our drama whose actions have been not quite clear to me, except that she was a bone of contention between Pierre Legros and Levison, and also figured as one of Nugent's puppets. Be that as it may, she contrived to get hold of Lowch, who, as you know, is a widower, as he was hanging about outside the police-station ready to get summoned on the two later inquests. She set her cap at him so effectually that he gave the coroner no trouble, and proposed to her the same evening."

"It must have been her figure that fetched him," said Reggie, with the air of a connoisseur. "She's great on _corsage_."

"And the figures in old Lowch's pass-book fetched her, I expect," roared Montague Maynard, rising. "Come, let's go and cool off on the lawn. It is time some one put a stopper on old Sally Dymmock. She's worrying the love-birds, and demoralizing that girl of yours, Mallory."

THE END

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THE PITFALL. 6s.

PEOPLE'S SATURDAY JOURNAL.--"In 'The Pitfall,' Sir Wm. Magnay has
given to the world his best work, for not only is the story of an
engrossing character, but it has the virtue of being completely off
the beaten track."

THE RED STAIN. 6s.

THE DUNDEE COURIER.--"One cannot but admire the adroit manner in
which the author continues the mystery; how he eventually
straightens things out is quite clever, and well worth reading."

HEADON HILL

THE HIDDEN VICTIM. 6s.

THE ABERDEEN JOURNAL.--"To those who revel in sensational fiction,
marked by literary skill as well as audacity and fertility of
invention, this story can be confidently commended."

RADFORD SHONE. 6s.

THE DUNDEE ADVERTISER.--"I recall 'The Hidden Victim' as one of the
best of Mr. Hill's books, and alongside it I shall now put 'Radford
Shone.'"

HER SPLENDID SIN. 6s.

PERTHSHIRE COURIER.--"Headon Hill gives us good reading with plenty
of thrilling incident. He has never told an intensely absorbing
story with more dramatic directness than this one. The story is
admirably written, the interest never flagging."

A TRAITOR'S WOOING. 6s.

A splendid story which will be much liked by readers who care for
"A Woman in White" and similar stories.

GUY BOOTHBY

THE RACE OF LIFE. 5s.

THE ENGLISH REVIEW.--"Ahead even of Mr. Cutcliffe Hyne and Sir
Conan Doyle, Mr. Boothby may be said to have topped popularity's
pole."

FOR LOVE OF HER. 5s.

THE COURT JOURNAL.--"This book shows vivid imagination and dramatic
power. Moreover, sketches of Australian life, from one who knows
his subject, are always welcome."

THE CRIME OF THE UNDER SEAS. 5s.

THE SPEAKER.--"Is quite the equal in art, observation, and dramatic
intensity to any of Mr. Guy Boothby's numerous other romances, and
is in every respect most typical of his powers."

A BID FOR FREEDOM. 5s.

THE SHEFFIELD TELEGRAPH.--"As fascinating as any of its
forerunners, and is as finely handled. A fully written romance,
which bristles with thrilling passages, exciting adventures, and
hairbreadth escapes."

A TWO-FOLD INHERITANCE. 5s.

PUNCH.--"Just the very book that a hard-working man should read for
genuine relaxation. This novel is strongly recommended by the
justly appreciating 'Baron de Bookworms.'"

CONNIE BURY. 5s.

THE BIRMINGHAM GAZETTE.--"One of the best stories we have seen of
Mr. Boothby's."

THE KIDNAPPED PRESIDENT. 5s.

PUBLIC OPINION.--"Brighter, crisper, and more entertaining than any
of its predecessors from the same pen."

MY STRANGEST CASE. 5s.

THE YORKSHIRE POST.--"No work of Mr. Boothby's seems to us to have
approached in skill his new story. The reader's attention is from
first to last riveted on the narrative."

FAREWELL, NIKOLA. 5s.

THE DUNDEE ADVERTISER.--"Guy Boothby's famous creation of Dr.
Nikola has become familiar to every reader of fiction."

MY INDIAN QUEEN. 5s.

THE SUNDAY SPECIAL.--"A vivid story of adventure and daring,
bearing all the characteristics of careful workmanship."

LONG LIVE THE KING. 5s.

THE ABERDEEN FREE PRESS.--"It is marvellous that Mr. Boothby's
novels should all be so uniformly good."

A PRINCE OF SWINDLERS. 5s.

THE SCOTSMAN.--"Of absorbing interest. The exploits are described
in an enthralling vein."

A MAKER OF NATIONS. 5s.

THE SPECTATOR.--"'A Maker of Nations' enables us to understand Mr.
Boothby's vogue. It has no lack of movement or incident."

THE RED RAT'S DAUGHTER. 5s.

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH.--"Mr. Guy Boothby's name on the title-page of
a novel carries with it the assurance of a good story to follow."

LOVE MADE MANIFEST. 5s.

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH.--"A powerful and impressive romance. One of
those tales of exciting adventure in the confection of which Mr.
Boothby is not excelled by any novelist of the day."

PHAROS THE EGYPTIAN. 5s.

THE SCOTSMAN.--"This powerful novel is weird, wonderful, and
soul-thrilling. There never was in this world so strange and
wonderful a love story."

ACROSS THE WORLD FOR A WIFE. 5s.

THE BRITISH WEEKLY.--"This stirring tale ranks next to 'Dr. Nikola'
in the list of Mr. Boothby's novels. It is an excellent piece of
workmanship, and we can heartily recommend it."

A SAILOR'S BRIDE. 5s.

THE MANCHESTER COURIER.--"Few authors can depict action as
brilliantly and resourcefully as the creator of 'Dr. Nikola.'"

THE LUST OF HATE. 5s.

THE DAILY GRAPHIC.--"Mr. Boothby gives place to no one in what
might be called dramatic interest, so whoever wants dramatic
interest let him read 'The Lust of Hate.'"

THE FASCINATION OF THE KING. 5s.

THE BRISTOL MERCURY.--"Unquestionably the best work we have yet
seen from the pen of Mr. Guy Boothby.... 'The Fascination of the
King' is one of the books of the season."

DR. NIKOLA. 5s.

THE SCOTSMAN.--"One hairbreadth escape succeeds another with
rapidity that scarce leaves the reader breathing space.... A story
ingeniously invented and skilfully told."

THE BEAUTIFUL WHITE DEVIL. 5s.

THE YORKSHIRE POST.--"A more exciting romance no man could
reasonably ask for."

A BID FOR FORTUNE. 5s.

THE MANCHESTER COURIER.--"It is impossible to give any idea of the
_verve_ and brightness with which the story is told. The most
original novel of the year."

IN STRANGE COMPANY. 5s.

THE WORLD.--"A capital novel. It has the quality of life and stir,
and will carry the reader with curiosity unabated to the end."

THE MARRIAGE OF ESTHER. 5s.

THE MANCHESTER GUARDIAN.--"A story full of action, life, and
dramatic interest. There is a vigour and a power of illusion about
it that raises it quite above the level of the ordinary novel of
adventure."

BUSHIGRAMS. 5s.

THE MANCHESTER GUARDIAN.--"Intensely interesting. Forces from us,
by its powerful artistic realism, those choky sensations which it
should be the aim of the human writer to elicit, whether in comedy
or tragedy."

SHEILAH McLEOD. 5s.

MR. W. L. ALDEN in THE NEW YORK TIMES.--"Mr. Boothby can crowd more
adventure into a square foot of canvas than any other novelist."

DR. NIKOLA'S EXPERIMENT. 5s.

Illustrated by Sidney Cowell.

THE MAN OF THE CRAG. 5s.

ARTHUR W. MARCHMONT

WHEN I WAS CZAR. 6s.

THE FREEMAN'S JOURNAL.--"A very brilliant work, every page in it
displays the dramatic talent of the author and his capacity for
writing smart dialogue."

BY SNARE OF LOVE. 6s.

THE OUTLOOK.--"As a writer of political intrigue, Mr. Marchmont has
scarcely a rival to-day, and his latest novel worthily upholds his
reputation."

THE QUEEN'S ADVOCATE. 6s.

THE LIVERPOOL COURIER.--"Mr. Marchmont is at his best in this tale.
One has sometimes wondered in reading this author's works when his
invention will give out. But his resource seems inexhaustible, and
his spirits never flag."

A COURIER OF FORTUNE. 6s.

THE DUNDEE COURIER.--"A most thrilling and romantic tale of France,
which has the advantage of being exciting and fascinating without
being too improbable."

BY WIT OF WOMAN. 6s.

THE LEICESTER POST.--"The novel rivets the deep interest of the
reader, and holds it spellbound to the end."

IN THE CAUSE OF FREEDOM. 6s.

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH.--"A well-sustained and thrilling narrative."

THE LITTLE ANARCHIST. 6s.

THE SCOTSMAN.--"A romance brimful of incident and arousing in the
reader a healthy interest that carries him along with never a
pause--a vigorous story with elements that fascinate."

AN IMPERIAL MARRIAGE. 6s.

A tale of Continental intrigue in its author's best and most
original vein.

JOSEPH HOCKING

ROGER TREWINION. 3s. 6d.

T. P.'S WEEKLY.--"It is a foregone conclusion that Mr. Hocking will
always have a good story to tell. 'Roger Trewinion' can stand forth
with the best, a strong love interest, plenty of adventure, an
atmosphere of superstition, and Cornwall as the scene."

THE COMING OF THE KING. 3s. 6d.

THE GLASGOW HERALD.--"Mr. Hocking's latest romance exhibits no
dimunution of ability, and is marked by insight and dramatic power.
His imagination is fertile, and his skill in the arrangement of
incident far above the average, and there is an air of reality in
all his writing which is peculiarly charming."

EASU. 3s. 6d.

THE OUTLOOK.--"Remarkable for the dramatic power with which the
scenes are drawn and the intense human interest which Mr. Hocking
has woven about his characters. 'Easu' is sure to be one of the
novels of the season."

GREATER LOVE. 3s. 6d.

THE NEWCASTLE CHRONICLE.--"Though of a totally different character
from 'Lest We Forget,' Mr. Hocking's latest story is entitled to
take rank along with that fine romance. The story arrests the
attention from the first chapters, and soon becomes highly
dramatic."

LEST WE FORGET. 3s. 6d.

PUBLIC OPINION.--"His story is quite as good as any we have read of
the Stanley Weyman's school, and presents an excellent picture of
the exciting times of Gardiner and Bonner."

AND SHALL TRELAWNEY DIE? 3s. 6d.

THE WEEKLY SUN.--"An engaging and fascinating romance. The reader
puts the story down with a sigh, and wishes there were more of
these breezy Cornish uplands, for Mr. Joseph Hocking's easy style
of narrative does not soon tire."

JABEZ EASTERBROOK. 3s. 6d.

THE ROCK.--"Real strength is shown in the sketches, of which that
of Brother Bowman is most prominent. In its way it is delightful."

THE WEAPONS OF MYSTERY. 3s. 6d.

"Weapons of Mystery" is a singularly powerful story of occult
influences and of their exertion for evil purposes. A tale which it
is not easy to put down when once commenced.

ZILLAH: A ROMANCE. 3s. 6d.

THE SPECTATOR.--"The drawing of some of the characters indicates
the possession by Mr. Hocking of a considerable gift of humour. The
contents of his book indicate that he takes a genuine interest in
the deeper problems of the day."

THE MONK OF MAR-SABA. 3s. 6d.

THE STAR.--"Great power and thrilling interest.... The scenery of
the Holy Land has rarely been so vividly described as in this
charming book of Mr. Hocking's."

THE PURPLE ROBE. 3s. 6d.

THE QUEEN.--"Mr. Hocking's most interesting romance. It is
exceedingly clever, and excites the reader's interest and brings
out the powerful nature of the clever young minister. This most
engrossing book challenges comparison with the brilliance of
Lothair."

THE SCARLET WOMAN. 3s. 6d.

THE METHODIST RECORDER.--"This is Mr. Hocking's strongest and best
book. We advise every one to read it. The plot is simple, compact
and strenuous; the writing powerful. It brings out sharply the real
character of the typical Jesuit, his training, motives,
limitations, aims."

ALL MEN ARE LIARS. 3s. 6d.

THE CHRISTIAN WORLD.--"This is a notable book. Thoughtful people
will be fascinated by its actuality, its fearlessness, and the
insight it gives into the influence of modern thought and
literature upon the minds and morals of our most promising
manhood."

ISHMAEL PENGELLY: AN OUTCAST. 3s. 6d.

THE ATHENAEUM.--"The book is to be recommended for the dramatic
effectiveness of some of the scenes. The wild, half-mad woman is
always picturesque wherever she appears, and the rare
self-repression of her son is admirably done."

THE STORY OF ANDREW FAIRFAX. 3s. 6d.

THE MANCHESTER EXAMINER.--"Rustic scenes and characters are drawn
with free, broad touches, without Mr. Buchanan's artificiality,
and, if we may venture to say it, with more realism than Mr.
Hardy's country pictures."

THE BIRTHRIGHT. 3s. 6d.

THE SPECTATOR.--"This volume proves beyond all doubt that Mr.
Hocking has mastered the art of the historical romancist. 'The
Birthright' is, in its way, quite as well constructed, as well
written, and as full of incident as any story that has come from
the pen of Mr. Conan Doyle or Mr. Stanley Weyman."

MISTRESS NANCY MOLESWORTH. 3s. 6d.

THE SCOTSMAN.--"'Mistress Nancy Molesworth' is as charming a story
of the kind as could be wished, and it excels in literary
workmanship as well as in imaginative vigour and daring invention."

FIELDS OF FAIR RENOWN. 3s. 6d.

THE DUNDEE ADVERTISER.--"Mr. Hocking has produced a work which his
readers of all classes will appreciate.... There are exhibited some
of the most beautiful aspects of disposition."

L. G. MOBERLY

THAT PREPOSTEROUS WILL. 6s.

THE DAILY GRAPHIC.--"We could wish that every novel were as
pleasant, unsophisticated and readable as this one."

HOPE, MY WIFE. 6s.

THE GENTLEWOMAN.--"Miss Moberly interests us so much in heroine,
and in her hero, that we follow the two with pleasure through
adventures of the most improbable order."

DIANA. 6s.

THE SCOTSMAN.--"So cleverly handled as to keep its interest always
lively and stimulating; and the book cannot fail to be enjoyed."

DAN--AND ANOTHER. 6s.

THE DAILY NEWS.--"Must be considered one of the best pieces of work
that Miss Moberly has yet produced."

A TANGLED WEB. 6s.

THE DAILY MAIL.--"A 'tangled web,' indeed, is this story, and the
author's ingenuity and intrepidity in developing and working out
the mystery calls for recognition at the outset."

ANGELA'S MARRIAGE. 6s.

IRISH INDEPENDENT.--"That Miss Moberly has a delightful and
graceful style is not only evident from a perusal of some of her
former works, but from the fascinatingly told story now under
review."

THE SIN OF ALISON DERING. 6s.

Miss L. G. Moberly is making a big reputation for herself as a
writer of strong emotional stories, and this story will add
considerably to her popularity.

GUY THORNE

FIRST IT WAS ORDAINED. 6s.

THE PALL MALL GAZETTE says:--"'First it was Ordained' is a long way
ahead of 'When it was Dark.' Mr. Guy Thorne has the gift of the
great orator or preacher in holding your attention."

THE ANGEL. 6s.

DUNDEE ADVERTISER.--"Another of those daringly original, graphic,
and popularly influential stories that Guy Thorne loves to write.
Both as a story and as an argument for the reality of the spiritual
in men and affairs, it is strong and persuasive."

THE SOCIALIST. 6s.

The subject of his new novel is indicated by its title, and the
story is one likely to attract enormous attention, and be
everywhere discussed.

ARCHIBALD EYRE

THE TRIFLER. 6s.

THE DAILY EXPRESS.--"A most cleverly contrived farcical comedy,
full of really fresh incidents, and a dialogue that is genuinely
amusing; there is not a character who is not always welcome and
full of entertainment."

THE CUSTODIAN. 6s.

THE MORNING POST.--"An exceptionally clever and entertaining novel;
the reader is compelled to finish the book when he has once taken
it up.... It is impossible to resist its attractions."

THE GIRL IN WAITING. 6s.

THE DAILY MAIL.--"This is quite a delightful book. The note is
struck ingeniously and hilariously on the doorstep. It is a most
enjoyable comedy, which must be read to be appreciated. We can
cordially recommend it."

THE LEADING LADY. 6s.

DAILY EXPRESS.--"A good stirring, moving novel, one which retains
the attention and compels a sustained interest. It is a good book."

CHARLES G. D. ROBERTS

THE HOUSE IN THE WATER. 6s.

THE PRESS says:--"As a writer about animals, Mr. Roberts occupies
an enviable place. He is the most literary, as well as the most
imaginative and vivid, of all the nature writers.

"Poet Laureate of the Animal World, Professor Roberts displays the
keenest powers of observation closely interwoven with a fine
imaginative discretion."

KINGS IN EXILE. 6s.

Another beautifully illustrated volume of nature and animal
stories, in the writing of which the author is without a compeer.

MARIE CONNOR LEIGHTON

SEALED LIPS. 6s.

THE DAILY EXPRESS.--"An excellent story, well constructed, and the
interest is kept going till the last page."

PUT YOURSELF IN HER PLACE. 6s.

THE SHEFFIELD DAILY TELEGRAPH.--"Marie Connor Leighton is well
known as the authoress of 'Convict 99,' and in her latest work she
presents a novel equal to anything her pen has written. Many
dramatic incidents are introduced, and the work may be safely
recommended as containing all the elements of a successful novel."

MONEY. 6s.

"For what shall it profit a man if he shall gain the whole world
and lose his own soul?" This is the keynote of this stirring novel
by the author of "Convict 99."

Butler & Tanner, The Selwood Printing Works, Frome, and London.