We must leave Campion endeavouring to grapple with his revived difficulty, and return to Babcock. The Colonel’s mistake at the Military Tournament had upset Mrs. Staniland’s plan, and, without telling Babcock more than was desirable, she gave him to understand that he would have to postpone speaking to Sybil till later. He was not particularly uneasy, even though he guessed to whose care she had been entrusted; Campion must long ago have given up all pretensions or he would not have acted as he had done; most probably the interview was equally involuntary and irksome on both sides.
The Colonel came back to his seat alone, explaining that his sister had gone home with his daughter, who was feeling the shock she had received — Babcock and he watched the rest of the entertainment in company
