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Rh the white wraiths eddied past him into the room behind—a room in which a queer, faintly sweet smell still hung—a room in which three other men lay sprawling uncouthly in chairs, and two dogs lay motionless on the hearthrug.

After a moment or two the man withdrew, only to appear again with one of the others in his arms. And then, having dropped his burden through the window on to the lawn outside, he repeated his performance with the remaining two. Finally he pitched the two dogs after them, and then, with his hand to his forehead, staggered down to the water's edge.

"Holy smoke!" he muttered to himself, as he plunged his head into the cold water, "talk about the morning after.…Never have I thought of such a head."

After a while, with the water still dripping from his face, he returned to the bungalow and found the other three in varying stages of partial insensibility.

"Wake up, my heroes," he remarked, "and go and put your great fat heads in the river."

Peter Darrell scrambled unsteadily to his feet. "Great Scott! Hugh," he muttered thickly, "what's happened?"

"We've been had for mugs," said Drummond grimly.

Algy Longworth blinked at him foolishly from his position in the middle of a flower–bed.

"Dear old soul," he murmured at length, "you'll have to change your wine merchants. Merciful Heavens! is the top of my head still on?"

"Don't be a fool, Algy," grunted Hugh. "You weren't drunk last night. Pull yourself together,