pastimes. And here was a pretty girl with an air of mystery
about her, worthy of his best efforts, but toward whom he had not
dared to turn a frivolous eye.

He took out the coin and leaned back in his chair, wondering
where it came from. "In any case," he thought, "it'll make a
good pocket-piece and some day I'll find some idiot who knows
more about geography than I do." Mr. Lorry's own ideas of
geography were jumbled and vague--as if he had got them by
studying the labels on his hat-box. He knew the places he had
been to, and he recognized a new country by the annoyances of the
customs house, but beyond this his ignorance was complete. The
coin, so far as he knew, might have come from any one of a
hundred small principalities scattered about the continent. Yet
it bothered him a little that he could not tell which one. He
was more than curious about a very beautiful young woman--in
fact, he was, undeniably interested in her. He pleasantly called
himself an "ass" to have his head turned by a pretty face, a
foreign accent and an insignificant coin, and yet he was
fascinated.

Before the train reached St. Louis he made up his mind to change
cars there and go to Washington with her. It also occurred to
him that he might go on to New York if the spell lasted. During
the day he telegraphed ahead for accommodations; and when the
flyer arrived in St. Louis that evening he hurriedly attended to
the transferring and rechecking of his baggage, bought a new
ticket, and dined. At eight he was in the station, and at 8:15
he passed her in the aisle. She was standing in her stateroom
door, directing her maid. He saw a look of surprise flit across