prime minister, you must do without being prime minister.’  Then he attempted to sing the old song—­’Shall I, sighing in despair, die because a woman’s fair?  If she be not fair to me, what care I how fair she be?’ But he did care, and he told himself that the song did him no good.  As it was not time for him as yet to go to Lily, he threw himself on the sofa, and strove to read a book.  Then all the weary nights of his journey prevailed over him, and he fell asleep.

When he woke it wanted quarter to six.  He sprang up, and rushing out, jumped into a cab.  ‘Berkeley Square—­as hard as you can go,’ he said.  ‘Number—.’  He thought of Rosalind, and her counsels to lovers as to the keeping of time, and reflected that in such an emergency as this, he might really have ruined himself by that unfortunate slumber.  When he got to Mrs Thorne’s door he knocked hurriedly, and bustled up to the drawing-room as though everything depended on his saving a minute.  ’I’m afraid I’m ever so much behind my time,’ he said.

‘It does not matter in the least,’ said Lily.  ’As Mrs Arabin said that perhaps you might call, I would not be out of the way.  I suppose that Sir Raffle was keeping you and that you wouldn’t come.’

’Sir Raffle was not keeping me.  I fell asleep.  That’s the truth of it.’

‘I am so sorry that you should have been disturbed!’

’Do not laugh at me, Lily—­today.  I had been travelling a good deal, and I suppose I was tired.’

‘I won’t laugh at you,’ she said, and her eyes became full of tears—­she did not know why.  But there they were, and she was ashamed to put up her handkerchief, and she could not bring herself to turn away her face, and she had no resource but that he should see them.

‘Lily!’ he said.

’What a paladin you have been, John, rushing all about Europe on your friend’s behalf!’

‘Don’t talk about that.’

’And such a successful paladin too!  Why am I not to talk about it?  I am going home tomorrow, and I mean to talk about nothing else for a week.  I am so very, very, glad that you have saved your cousin.’  Then she did put up her handkerchief, making believe that her tears had been due to Mr Crawley.  But John Eames knew better than that.

‘Lily,’ he said, ’I’ve come for the last time.  It sounds as though I meant to threaten you; but you won’t take it in that way.  I think you will know what I mean.  I have come for the last time—­to ask you to be my wife.’  She got up to greet him when he entered, and they were both still standing.  She did not answer him at once, but turning away from him walked towards the window.  ‘You knew why I was coming today, Lily?’

’Mrs Arabin told me.  I could not be away when you were coming, but perhaps it would have been better.’

’It is so?  Must it be so?  Must you say that to me, Lily?  Think of it for a moment, dear.’

‘I have thought about it.’