th as a child might have been like that--or Antigone with the
doom on her, or perhaps Elektra. No, I expect Elektra took after her
mother: red-haired girl, I fancy. But there you are. She was a lovely,
solemn, deep-eyed, hag-ridden goose. Not a word to say--thought
mostly of pudding. I found that out by supposing that she thought of
me. Then I was piqued, and we parted. I suppose she's vast now, and
glued to an upper window-ledge with her great eyes peering through a
slat in the shutter. Living in a bed-gown. Imagine a wife who lives in
a bed-gown!"

They were lunching at Colchester when these amorous chapters were
reached. Lucy was quite at her ease with her companion. "A wife who
was always at the dressmaker's would suit you no better. But I don't
know that mixed marriages often answer. After all, so dreadfully much
can never be opened between you."

"That's quite true," he said, "and by no means only of mixed
marriages. How much can your average husband and wife open between
them? Practically nothing, since they choose to live by speech."

"But what else have we?"

"I would choose to live by touch," he said. "If two people can't
communicate fully and sufficiently by the feelers they are not in the
same sphere and have no common language. But speech is absurd. Why,
every phrase, and nearly every word, has a conventional value."

By touch! She was set dreaming by that. So she and James--a James she
had had no conception of--had communicated not four-and-twenty hours
ago. Certainly subsequent speech had not advanced the intelligence
then conveyed.

But she resumed Urquhart's affairs. "And do you despair of finding a
woman with whom you can hold communion?"

"No," he said, looking at the bread which he broke. "I don't despair
at all. I think that I shall find her." And then he looked steadily at
her, and she felt a little uncomfortable. But it was over in a minute.

She feared to provoke that again, so made no fishing comment; but she
was abundantly curious of what his choice would be. Meantime he mused
aloud.

"What you want for a successful marriage is--a layer of esteem,
without which you will infallibly, if you are a man, over-reach
yourself and be disgusted; then a liberal layer of animal
passion--and I only shrink from a stronger word for fear of being
misunderstood--which you won't have unless you have (a) vitality, (b)
imagination; thirdly, for a crown, respect. You must know your due,
and your duty,