the London
fog, as the flower of her difference; just as her difference
itself--part of which was her striking him as older in a degree for
which no mere couple of months could account--was the fruit of their
intimate relation. If she was different it was because they had chosen
together that she should be, and she might now, as a proof of their
wisdom, their success, of the reality of what had happened--of what in
fact, for the spirit of each, was still happening--been showing it to
him for pride. His having returned and yet kept, for numbered days, so
still, had been, he was quite aware, the first point he should have to
tackle; with which consciousness indeed he had made a clean breast of
it in finally addressing Mrs. Lowder a note that had led to his present
visit. He had written to Aunt Maud as the finer way; and it would
doubtless have been to be noted that he needed no effort not to write
to Kate. Venice was three weeks behind him--he had come up slowly; but
it was still as if even in London he must conform to her law. That was
exactly how he was able, with his faith in her steadiness, to appeal to
her feeling for the situation and explain his stretched delicacy. He
had come to tell her everything, so far as occasion would serve them;
and if nothing was more distinct than that his slow journey, his waits,
his delay to reopen communication had kept pace with this resolve, so
the inconsequence was doubtless at bottom but one of the elements of
intensity. He was gathering everything up, everything he should tell
her. That took time, and the proof was that, as he felt on the spot, he
couldn't have brought it all with him before this afternoon. He _had_
brought it, to the last syllable, and, out of the quantity it wouldn't
be hard--as he in fact found--to produce, for Kate's understanding, his
first reason.

"A fortnight, yes--it was a fortnight Friday; but I've only been
keeping in, you see, with our wonderful system." He was so easily
justified as that this of itself plainly enough prevented her saying
she didn't see. Their wonderful system was accordingly still vivid for
her; and such a gage of its equal vividness for himself was precisely
what she must have asked. He hadn't even to dot his i's beyond the
remark that on the very face of it, she would remember, their wonderful
system attached no premium to rapidities of transition. "I couldn't
quite--don't you know?--take my rebound with a rush; and I suppose I've