letter, each moment making it more and
more tender. She came back with a start to ordinary life, and the
magazine article on "Beauties of George II.'s Court," which lay open
before her. She dismissed her picture of what might have been with "Of
course it was impossible, it's ridiculous wondering about it. How can
one be so foolish at nearly sixty?" But she did wonder, and there is no
doubt she was very much pleased. And after all the good news was false,
he had never thought of her again.

She confided the little incident to Evelyn. Evelyn, adoring her husband
and adored by him, had been so much accustomed to men's admiration that
she did not attach great value to it. She had seen long ago her old
lovers pairing happily with somebody else: that side of life had been
over for herself many years since. Her interest now was in her sons'
possible marriages, and it was a little painful to her that Henrietta
should be so much excited about what had never after all been more than
a potential love affair. To tell the truth, she thought it a trifle
petty and not worthy the dignity of one on the verge of old age. She
wanted to be sympathetic, and she was too kind to say anything that
would wound, but Henrietta could see that Evelyn did not enter into her
feelings.

Louie's children were now started in life, and the sons were getting on
so well that even Henrietta owned they might be expected to take the
burden of their parents upon themselves. She had her nieces and nephews
to stay; Minna and Louie also came to take the waters. One or two of the
nieces were of course collecting second-hand furniture, and used Bath as
a centre for expeditions to the little country towns. The visits were
very pleasant, if they did not last more than two nights; after two
nights there would be a danger of friction, and sometimes friction
itself. Her nieces and nephews were all what she called "modern," the
harshest word but one she knew. A certain nephew and niece, alas, were
more than modern--they were the harshest word of all, "_Radical_." The
nephew had too profound a contempt for old ladies to talk about anything
more controversial than the local train service, but even that he
discovered was a topic beyond Henrietta's capacity. For it turned out,
after she had appeared to be talking very sensibly about the afternoon
trains, that she was referring to one marked with an "N.," a Thursday
excursion, which destroyed all the point of her remarks. He