The World of Fantasy

not the reader has gathered so much, that was the character which Parkins had. On the following day Parkins did, as he had hoped, succeed in getting away from his college, and in arriving at Burnstow. He was made welcome at the Globe Inn, was safely installed in the large double-bedded room of which we have heard, and was able before retiring to rest to ar-range his materials for work in apple-pie order upon a commodious table which occupied the outer end of the room, and was surrounded on three sides by windows looking out seaward; that is to say, the central window looked straight out to sea, and those on the left and right commanded prospects along the shore to the north and south respectively. On the south you saw the village of Burnstow. On the north no houses were to be seen, but only the beach and the low cliff backing it. Immediately in front was a strip – not considerable – of rough grass, dot-ted with old anchors, capstans, and so forth; then a broad path; then the beach. whatever may have been the original distance between the Globe Inn and the sea, not more than sixty yards now separated them. The rest of the population of the inn was, of course, a golfing one, and included few elements a special descrip-tion. The most conspicuous figure was, perhaps, that of an ancien militaire secretary of a London club, and possessed of a voice of incredible strength, and of views of a pro-nouncedly Protestant type. These were apt to find utterance after his attendance upon the ministrations of the Vicar, an estimable man with inclinations towards a picacresque ritu-al, which he gallantly kept down as far as he could out of deference to East Anglian tradition. Professor Parkins, one of whose principal characteris-tics was pluck, spent the greater part of the day following his arrival at Burnstow in what he had called improving his game, in company with this Colon...