CHARACTERS LORETTA, A sweet, young thing. Frightfully innocent. About nineteen years old. Slender, delicate, a fragile flower. Ingenuous. NED BASHFORD, A jaded young man of the world, who has philosophised his experiences and who is without faith in the veracity or purity of women. BILLY MARSH, A boy from a country town who is just about as innocent as Loretta. Awkward. Positive. Raw and callow youth. ALICE HEMINGWAY, A society woman, good-hearted, and a match-maker. JACK HEMINGWAY, Her husband. MAID.