He went on eating and drinking unconsciously
till on a sudden he demanded his bill; having paid which, he took his
dressing-bag in his hand, the only luggage he had brought with him,
and went out.
At the moment of his departure a telegram was handed to him--a few
words from his mother, stating that they were glad to know his
address, and informing him that his brother Cuthbert had proposed to
and been accepted by Mercy Chant.
Clare crumpled up the paper and followed the route to the station;
reaching it, he found that there would be no train leaving for an
hour and more. He sat down to wait, and having waited a quarter of
an hour felt that he could wait there no longer. Broken in heart and
numbed, he had nothing to hurry for; but he wished to get out of a
town which had been the scene of such an experience, and turned to
walk to the first station onward, and let the train pick him up
there.
The highway that he followed was open, and at a little distance
dipped into a valley, across which it could be seen running from edge
to edge. He had traversed the greater part of this depression, and
was climbing the western acclivity when, pausing for breath, he
unconsciously looked back.
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