d at that time a big
national movement. Socialist societies, we gathered, were springing up
all over the country, and every one was inquiring about Socialism and
discussing Socialism. It had taken the Universities with particular
force, and any youngster with the slightest intellectual pretension was
either actively for or brilliantly against. For a time our Young Liberal
group was ostentatiously sympathetic....

When I think of the Socialists there comes a vivid memory of certain
evening gatherings at our house....

These gatherings had been organised by Margaret as the outcome of
a discussion at the Baileys'. Altiora had been very emphatic and
uncharitable upon the futility of the Socialist movement. It seemed that
even the leaders fought shy of dinner-parties.

"They never meet each other," said Altiora, "much less people on the
other side. How can they begin to understand politics until they do
that?"

"Most of them have totally unpresentable wives," said Altiora,
"totally!" and quoted instances, "and they WILL bring them. Or they
won't come! Some of the poor creatures have scarcely learnt their table
manners. They just make holes in the talk...."

I thought there was a great deal of truth beneath Altiora's outburst.
The presentation of the Socialist case seemed very greatly crippled
by the want of a common intimacy in its leaders; the want of intimacy
didn't at first appear to be more than an accident, and our talk led to
Margaret's attempt to get acquaintance and easy intercourse afoot among
them and between them and the Young Liberals of our group. She gave a
series of weekly dinners, planned, I think, a little too accurately upon
Altiora's model, and after each we had as catholic a reception as we
could contrive.

Our receptions were indeed, I should think, about as catholic as
receptions could be. Margaret found herself with a weekly houseful of
insoluble problems in intercourse. One did one's best, but one got a
nightmare feeling as the evening wore on.

It was one of the few unanimities of these parties that every one should
be a little odd in appearance, funny about the hair or the tie or the
shoes or more generally, and that bursts of violent aggression should
alternate with an attitude entirely defensive. A number of our guests
had an air of waiting for a clue that never came, and stood and sat
about silently, mildly amused but not a bit surprised that we did not
discover their distinctive Open-Se