“What are they?”

“Youth and health.”

“How about love?” I asked.

“Youth and health own love,” he replied.  “Love is their obedient servant.  I thank God that I have not lost my youth or my health.”

I was privileged to see this remarkable man for a moment in a new light, one which increased my respect and admiration for him.

When we returned to the club house the veranda was buzzing with gossip.  Miss Dangerfield was delighted when she found that I was not acquainted with the cause of the excitement.  It gave her a chance to impart the news to one ready to listen, and she was not slow in taking advantage of it.

“Miss Lawrence has refused Mr. LaHume!” she whispered, though she might as well have screamed it through a megaphone, since I was the only one on the veranda in ignorance of it.

“How do you know?” I asked.

“I dare not tell,” she said, but I knew she would.  “If you’ll promise not to reveal it to a living soul I’ll tell you.”

I promised.

“Mr. LaHume told Mr. Chilvers, Mr. Chilvers told Mrs. Chilvers, Mrs. Chilvers told Miss Ross, and Miss Ross told me, so you see that I have it right from the original source.”

“And you told me,” I said.  “Why should the chain stop in so obscure a link.  I am dying to tell somebody.”

“But you promised not to,” Miss Dangerfield protested.

“So did you,” I replied.

“It seems that Percy flatly asked her to marry him, and that she flatly refused him,” she continued, ignoring my implied threat.  “I understand that Mr. LaHume is going to resign from the club.”

“Why?” I asked.  “Does he not find it effective as a matrimonial agency?”

“I don’t know,” she said.  “There he is now, and he’s trying to catch your eye.”

I turned and saw LaHume, who signalled that he wished to speak to me.  I saw at a glance that he had been drinking.  He shoved a piece of paper into my hands.

“There is my resignation from the Woodvale Club,” he said, his voice husky, and sullen anger in his dark eyes.  LaHume is a handsome fellow, but there is something amiss with him.  Possibly his ego is over-developed.

“I will present it to the board,” I said, preferring to avoid discussion with him while in his then condition.

“I don’t care a blank whether they accept it or not,” he declared with a rising voice.  “From this day I shall never step foot in Woodvale.”

“Better think it over later on,” I said.

“If you think I care to have anything further to do with a club which shelters and encourages low adventurers like this fellow Wallace, you do not know Percy LaHume,” he declared, working himself into a fury.  “And you and Carter are to blame for it,” he concluded.

“I shall refuse to discuss that with you at this time,” I calmly replied and abruptly left him.

A few minutes later I saw him striding down the path on the way to the railway station.  As luck would have it, Wallace and Miss Lawrence had just left the eighteenth green, and stood chatting near the path which leads to the station.  If they saw the approaching LaHume they paid no attention to him.  At this moment Carter and Miss Harding joined me and the latter asked what I found so diverting.