man who knew a good deal about flowers once inspected the faded rose,
at Varick's request, and listened to the description of how it looked
when fresh.

"Why, yes," he said, "I know that variety. It grows in Italy, but I
don't think it's known here. They call it the _Toinnette!_"




II

THE EXORCISM OF LILY BELL


It is quite possible that not even Raymond Mortimer Prescott himself
could have told definitely the day or the hour when Lily Bell first
came into his life; and as Raymond Mortimer Prescott was not only the
sole person privileged to enjoy Miss Bell's society, but was also the
sole person who had been permitted to gaze upon her charms at all, it
would seem that inquiries directed elsewhere were destined to prove
fruitless. Raymond himself, moreover, was not communicative; he had
the reserve of an only child whose early efforts at conversation had
been discouraged by parents selfishly absorbed in "grown-up"
interests, and whose home was too remote from other country homes to
attract playmates.

His mother was a nervous invalid, and almost in infancy Raymond had
grasped the fact that his absence seemed to be of more definite
benefit to her than any other remedy for neurasthenia. His father was