and possibly on the Day of Judgment, yes. But only then. At other times, unless they wanted a match or the time or something, chappies did not speak to fellows to whom they had not been introduced. He was far too amiable to snub the man, but to go on with this degrading scene was out of the question. There was nothing for it but flight. 

 “Oh, ah, yes,” he mumbled. “Well,” he added to Jill, “I suppose I may as well be toddling back. See you later and so forth.” 

 And with a faint ‘Good-bye-ee!’ Freddie removed himself, thoroughly unnerved. 

 Jill looked out of the corner of her eye at Derek. He was still occupied with the people in front. She turned to the man on her right. She was not the slave to etiquette that Freddie was. She was much too interested in life to refrain from speaking to strangers. 

 “You shocked him!” she said, dimpling. 

 “Yes. It broke Freddie all up, didn’t it!” 

 It was Jill’s turn to be startled. She looked at him in astonishment. 

 “Freddie?” 

 “That was Freddie Rooke, wasn’t it? Surely I wasn’t mistaken?” 

 “But—do you know him? He didn’t seem to know you.” 

 “These are life’s tragedies. He has forgotten me. My boyhood friend!” 

 “Oh, you were at school with him?” 

 “No. Freddie went to Winchester, if I remember. I was at Haileybury. Our acquaintance was confined to the holidays. My people lived near his people in Worcestershire.” 

 “Worcestershire!” Jill leaned forward excitedly. “But I used to live near Freddie in Worcestershire myself when I was small. I knew him there when he was a boy. We must have met!” 

 “We met all right.” 

 Jill wrinkled her forehead. That odd familiar look was in his eyes again. But memory failed to respond. She shook her head. 

 “I don’t remember you,” she said. “I’m sorry.” 

 “Never mind. Perhaps the recollection would have been painful.” 

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