t beat about
the bush; say what you meant to say."

"I couldn't understand your having the idea, or how the idea could ever
have occurred to your wife: I tell you so, honestly. De Staffelaer is a
relation of the Eilenburgs and of the Van Heuvel Steyns; and it would
surely be painful for you and your wife to meet those people, wouldn't
it?... That's all."

"Short and sweet," said Van der Welcke, still feeling put out.

"But that's the whole point of it."

"You're right," muttered Van der Welcke, gloomily. "Perhaps we ought
never to have come to the Hague."

"Nonsense!" said Van Vreeswijck, rather feebly. "Your old friends are
glad to see you back again. The question of the Court is non-existent
with you both. Well, then there's nothing to fret about.... As for
myself, I am more than glad to see you at the Hague again," he
continued, more cheerfully, almost in a tone of relief. "I have the
pleasantest memories of the occasions when I had the privilege of
meeting your wife in Brussels. When would it suit you both for me to
come and call?"

"Will you look round one evening? Or, if you really want to be friendly,
come and dine."

"I should like to, above all things. When shall I come?"

"Day after to-morrow, at seven."

"Delighted. Just yourselves? And I'll call and leave a card to-morrow."

"By the way," said Van der Welcke. "You mentioned De Staffelaer: where
is he now?"

"At his country-place, near Haarlem. He's still flourishing. He's well
over eighty."

"He must be."

They parted. Van der Welcke went gloomily home. It was curious, but,
every afternoon, when he went home from the Witte or the Plaats, he had
that gloomy, unsettled feeling. The moment he set eyes on Addie,
however, his face at once lighted up; but, this time, when the boy
wanted to romp, before dinner, Van der Welcke began to think whether
Constance would approve of his having asked Van Vreeswijck to dinner two
days later....

They sat down to table:

"By the way," said Van der Welcke, hesitatingly, "I met Van Vreeswijck;
and he wanted to call on you and asked when it would suit you."

"He might have done so long ago," said Constance, who had entertained
Van Vreeswijck once or twice in Brussels.

"He apologized," said Van der Welcke, in defence of his friend. "He did
not know whether you were quite settled. I told him he must come and
dine one night and--if it's not too much trouble for you--I asked him to
come the day after tomorro