Jurgis gazed at him doubtingly. "Eat!" cried the
other. "Pile in, ole chappie!"

"Don't you want anything?" Jurgis asked.

"Ain't hungry," was the reply -- "only thirsty. Kitty
and me had some candy -- you go on."

So Jurgis began, without further parley. He ate as
with two shovels, his fork in one hand and his knife in the
other; when he once got started his wolf-hunger got the
better of him, and he did not stop for breath until he had
cleared every plate. "Gee whiz!" said the other, who
had been watching him in wonder.

Then he held Jurgis the bottle. "Lessee you drink
now," he said; and Jurgis took the bottle and turned it
up to his mouth, and a wonderful unearthly liquid ecstasy
poured down his throat, tickling every nerve of him,
thrilling him with joy. He drank the very last drop of
it, and then he gave vent to a long-drawn "Ah!"

"Good stuff, hey?" said Freddie, sympathetically; he
had leaned back in the big chair, putting his arm behind
his head and gazing at Jurgis.

And Jurgis gazed back at him. He was clad in spotless
evening-dress, was Freddie, and looked very handsome --
he was a beautiful boy, with light golden hair and the
head of an Antinous. He smiled at Jurgis confidingly,
and then started talking again, with his blissful insouciance.
This time he talked for ten minutes at a stretch, and in the
course of the speech he told Jurgis all of his family history.
His big brother Charlie was in love with the guileless
maiden who played the part of "Little Bright-Eyes" in
"The Kaliph of Kamskatka." He had been on the verge
of marrying her once, only "the guv'ner" had sworn to
disinherit him, and had presented him with a sum that
would stagger the imagination, and that had staggered
the virtue of "Little Bright-Eyes." Now Charlie had
got leave from college, and had gone away in his auto~
mobile on the next best thing to a honeymoon. "The
guv'ner" had made threats to disinherit another of his
children also, sister Gwendolen, who had married an
Italian marquis with a string of titles and a dueling

[[289]]

p288 _ -chap- _ toc-1 _ p289w _ toc-2 _ +chap+ _ p290

v?