skeptically; ``women imagine, they don't
reason. A scented note unopened on
the dressing table can cause more
unhappiness to your wife than the loss of
his country to a king. My advice to you
is: do not marry; but if you must, choose
one who is more interested in your
gastronomic felicity than in your marital
constancy.''

Diotti was silent. He was pondering
the words of his host. Instead of seeing
in Mildred a possibly jealous woman,
causing mental misery, she appeared a
vision of single-hearted devotion. He
felt: ``To be loved by such a one is
bliss beyond the dreams of this world.''



XII

A tipsy man is never interesting,
and Sanders in that condition
was no exception. The old man arose
with some effort, walked toward the
window and, shading his eyes, looked
out. The snow was drifting, swept
hither and thither by the cutting wind
that came through the streets in great