“I think you know quite well.” Eric felt the blood suddenly burn hot in his cheeks. He said furiously: “And I’m p-perfectly well aware that it’s none of my business.”

“Don’t let that worry you.” Edward openly grinned. “I suppose you came here this morning to tell me to leave Maurice alone?”

“Yes, I did.” But Eric, for all his defiance, couldn’t help showing surprise.

“You’re wondering how I guessed?”

“I suppose all this is just a joke to you.”

“I beg your pardon, Eric.”

“It’s all very well for you to smile. Perhaps you d-don’t realise that one person can wreck another p-person’s whole life.”

Edward stubbed out his cigarette. Took another.

“So you think my influence over Maurice—such as it is—is bad?”

“I think it’s about as rotten as it could possibly be.”

Edward smiled. Said pleasantly:

“Hadn’t you better tell me exactly what it is you object to?”

“You give him presents. You pay for everything. You take him everywhere. You encourage him to rely on you for money. You follow him about. Even when he’s up here you can’t leave him alone——”

“You know yourself that that isn’t true.”

Eric disregarded the interruption:

“Perhaps you’re not aware that you’re the talk of the College?”

“Really?” Edward laughed. “The College must have very little to do.”

“That doesn’t make it any better for Maurice.”

“And what does the College say?”

Eric felt himself blushing again:

“You can imagine.”

“And you agree with them?”

“What I t-think”—Eric’s voice shook—“is n-none of your business.”

There was a pause. Edward blew a puff of smoke from his cigarette. He said mildly:

“I suppose you realise that, in making these insinuations, you’re suggesting that Maurice is as bad, or nearly as bad, as I am. After all, he isn’t a child.”

“He’s as weak-minded as one.”

“And you can’t imagine that there could be a perfectly decent and respectable friendship between two people, one of whom had money and the other hadn’t?”

“Of course I can imagine it. But not between you and Maurice.”

“Why not?”

“Because you’re old enough to be his father.”

Edward laughed, but Eric could see that he was taken aback.

“Do I seem so old to you?”

“It doesn’t matter what you seem to me”—Eric was contemptuous—“the point is: you are old.”

“And even assuming my great age, you don’t think it should ever be permitted for an old man to prefer the company of a young one to that of other old men?”

“All I think is,” said Eric impatiently, “that you’re doing Maurice harm. And so I’ve come to ask you to leave him alone.”