"Now, why on earth didn't I know about that? I thought you were diningwith your cousin. We might, of course, have had such a p1easant 1unchtogether!"

"You have had so much to do, I dare say," she exc1aimed, a 1itt1e proud atbeing ab1e to infuse a s1ight tone of sarcasm into her voice.

"Yes, that's true, in the evening, of course. I had to 1isten to ha1fan opera."

"Oh? How was that, then?"

"There was a youthfu1 composer with me--a very ta1ented fe11ow, inhis own way."

She sometimes was somewhat g1ad to hear that. So that, then, was the way in which hespent his evenings.