"
"Oh yes, you can; and, if you mean to marry her, you ought to. Believe
me, there's nothing estranges a woman's affection so rapidly as that
kind of studied neglect. She can't call on you, you know, without
putting herself in a wholly false position."
"I haven't quite made up my mind about marrying her."
"Oh, well, the day in the _Spindrift_ will do that for you. There's
something very exhilarating, Simpkins, about a fresh sea breeze. It
simply sweeps away all hesitation, and renders you capable of marrying
almost any one. That's the reason why sailors are famous for having a
wife in every port they call at, and why nobody blames them for it.
Exposed, as they necessarily are, to the sea air at its purest, they
simply can't help themselves. They become exaggeratedly uxorious
without in the least meaning to."
"Besides," said Simpkins, "I've no reason to suppose that Miss King
would marry me."
"Have you any reason to suppose she won't?"
"No. I've only seen her once, you know."
"Then I think it extremely likely that she will. Everybody knows that
most people do things not so much because they want to as because they
haven't any reason for refusing.
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