At last Hallorsen came back, and instead of trying to understand his difficulties, pitched into him. Hubert wouldn’t stand for it; gave him as good as he got, and left. He came straight home, and is down with us at Condaford. He’s lost the fever, luckily, but he’s pretty well worn out, even now. And now that fellow Hallorsen has attacked him in his book; practically thrown the blame of failure on him, implies he was tyrannical and no good at handling men, calls him a hot-tempered aristocrat – all that bunkum that goes down these days. Well, some Service member got hold of this and asked that question about it in Parliament. One expects Socialists to make themselves unpleasant, but when it comes to a Service member alluding to conduct unbecoming to a British officer, it’s another matter altogether. Hallorsen’s in the States. There’s nobody to bring an action against: besides, Hubert could get no witnesses. It looks to me as if the thing has cut right across his career.’

Lionel Cherrell’s long face lengthened.

‘Has he tried Headquarters?’

‘Yes, he went up on Wednesday. They were chilly. Any popular gup about high-handedness scares them nowadays. I daresay they’d come round if no more were said, but how’s that possible? He’s been publicly criticized in that book, and practically accused in Parliament of violent conduct unbecoming to an officer and gentleman. He can’t sit down under that; and yet – what can he do?’

Lionel drew deeply at his pipe.

‘D’you know,’ he said, ‘I think he’d better take no notice.’

The General clenched his fist. ‘Damn it, Lionel, I don’t see that!’

‘But he admits the shooting and the flogging. The public has no imagination, Con – they’ll never see his side of the thing. All they’ll swallow is that on a civilian expedition he shot one man and flogged others. You can’t expect them to understand the conditions or the pressure there was.’

‘Then you seriously advise him to take it lying down?’

‘As a man, no; as a man of the world, yes.’

‘Good Lord! What’s England coming to? I wonder what old Uncle Cuffs would have said? He thought a lot of our name.’

‘So do I. But how is Hubert to get even with them?’

The General was silent for a little while and then said:

‘This charge is a slur on the Service, and yet his hands seem tied. If he handed in his Commission he could stand up to it, but his whole heart’s in the Army. It’s a bad business. By the way, Lawrence has been talking to me about Adrian. Diana Ferse was Diana Montjoy, wasn’t she?’

‘Yes, second cousin to Lawrence – very pretty woman, Con, Ever seen her?’

‘As a girl, yes. What’s her position now, then?’

‘Married widow – two children, and a husband in a Mental Home.’

‘That’s lively. Incurable?’

Lionel nodded. ‘They say so. But of course, you never know.’

‘Good Lord!’

‘That’s just about it. She’s poor and Adrian’s poorer; it’s a very old affection on Adrian’s part, dates from before her marriage. If he does anything foolish, he’ll lose his curator-ship.’

‘Go off with her, you mean? Why, he must be fifty!’

‘No fool like an— She’s an attractive creature. Those Montjoys are celebrated for their charm.