didn't happen, she convinced herself that her sole ambition was that we
should die together. Then, whether we found ourselves alive or not, we
should be company for each other. She's got it arranged with the
thunderstorms, so that one bolt will do for us both, and she never lets
me go out on the water alone, for fear I shall watch my chance, and get
drowned without her."

I did not trouble myself to make out how much of this was mocking, and as
there was no active participation in the joke expected of me, I kept on
the safe side of laughing. "No wonder you've been able to do such a lot
of pictures," I said. "But I should have thought you might have found it
dull--I mean dull together--at odd times."

"Dull?" he shouted. "It's stupendously dull! Especially when our country
neighbors come in to ''liven us up.' We've got neighbors here that can
stay longer in half an hour than most people can in a week. We get tired
of each other at times, but after a call from the people in the next
house, we return with rapture to our delusion that we are interesting."

"And you never," I ventured, making my jocosity as ironical as possible,
"wear upon each other?"

"Horribly!" said Alderling, and his wife smiled contentedly, behind him.
"We haven't a whole set of china in the house, from exchanging it across
the table, and I haven't made a study of Marion--you must have noticed
how many Marions there were that she hasn't thrown at my head. Especially
the Madonnas. She likes to throw the Madonnas at me."

I ventured still farther, addressing myself to Mrs. Alderling. "Does he
keep it up all the time--this blague?"