"I feel absolutely done in," he murmured.
I mixed him a generous whisky and soda and asked what he wanted done. His face was haggard, and for a big man he seemed suddenly dried up and shrivelled.
"You must go round and talk to her," he said. "You've known her since she was a kid. Explain that I didn't mean what I said, apologize for me----"
"It'll do no good," I said. "You're not to blame."
"But my dear fellow----!" he began excitedly, as though I had paid no attention to what he had told me.
"Look it in the face, Jim," I said, shaking my head again. "She's tired of you."
He picked up his tumbler and then put it down untasted.
"I don't believe it," he answered, with sublime simplicity.
"But--but--but," he stammered. "We've never had a shadow of a disagreement until to-night."
"You didn't see it and you always gave way and smoothed things over."
"There never _was_ anything to smooth over. Till this infernal religious question started----"
"It was religion to-day, it'll be the colour of your eyes or the shape of your nose to-morrow."
Loring stared at me as though suspicious of an ill-timed humour.
"You're wrong, George, absolutely wrong. I _know_ you're wrong."
I shrugged my shoulders and left it at that.
"I'll do whatever you think best," I said.
"I knew you would!" he exclaimed eagerly. "Well, I've told you. You must go round to-morrow morning----"
"My dear chap, she simply musn't break off the engagement! Leave me out of it, tell her only to consider her own position." He paused in fresh embarrassment. "You remember the trouble over that swine Crabtree?" he went on diffidently. "We can't have a repetition of that! You know as well as I do, a girl who's always breaking off engagements.... Get her to look at it from that point of view!"
I rose up and dusted the ash from my shirt-front.
"She's tired of you," I repeated, with all the brutal directness I could put into my tone.
"Well--and if she is?" The tone no less than the words hinted that he might be beginning to share my opinion.
"You want the engagement renewed on those terms?"
"I don't want the Crabtree business over again?" he answered, fencing with my question.
"I'll call on her to-morrow," I said, "unless you ring me up before ten."