“Your train? What do you mean?”
“The puff-puff,” explained Sally. “I'm leaving to-night, you know.”
“Leaving?” Ginger looked as horrified as the devoutest of the congregation of which Sally had just ceased to be a member. “You don't mean leaving? You're not going away from Roville?”
“I'm afraid so.”
“But why? Where are you going?”
“Back to America. My boat sails from Cherbourg tomorrow.”
“Oh, my aunt!”
“I'm sorry,” said Sally, touched by his concern. She was a warm-hearted girl and liked being appreciated. “But...”
“I say...” Ginger Kemp turned bright scarlet and glared before him at the uniformed official, who was regarding their tête-à-tête with the indulgent eye of one who has been through this sort of thing himself. “I say, look here, will you marry me?”
2
Sally stared at his vermilion profile in frank amazement. Ginger, she had realized by this time, was in many ways a surprising young man, but she had not expected him to be as surprising as this.
“Marry you!”
“You know what I mean.”
“Well, yes, I suppose I do. You allude to the holy state. Yes, I know what you mean.”
“Then how about it?”
Sally began to regain her composure. Her sense of humour was tickled. She looked at Ginger gravely. He did not meet her eye, but continued to drink in the uniformed official, who was by now so carried away by the romance of it all that he had begun to hum a love-ballad under his breath. The official could not hear what they were saying, and would not have been able to understand it even if he could have heard; but he was an expert in the language of the eyes.
“But isn't this—don't think I am trying to make
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