und reflexion is the fundamental
cornerstone of that immortal temple in which the goddess Science sits
asleep between her dozing sisters, Custom and Religion.

This thought seemed to me so unusually beautiful that I wrote it with a
pencil upon my cuff.

While I was writing it, quietly happy in the deep pleasure that my
intellectual allegory afforded me, Dr. Fooss swabbed the last morsel of
nourishment from his plate with a wad of rye bread, then bolting the
bread and wiping his beard with his fingers and his fingers on his
waistcoat, he made several guttural observations too profoundly German
to be immediately intelligible, and lighted his porcelain pipe.

"Ach wass!" he remarked in ruminative fashion. "Dot Frauenzimmer she iss
to raise hell alretty determined. Von Pachydermatology she knows nodding.
Maybe she leaves me alone, maybe it is to be 'raus mit me. I' weis' ni'!
It iss aber besser one over on dat lady to put, yess?"

"It certainly is advisable," replied Lezard.

"Let us try to think of something sufficiently disastrous to terminate
her scientific career," said I. And I bowed my rather striking head and
rested the point of my forefinger upon my forehead. Thought crystallises
more quickly for me when I assume this attitude.

Out of the corner of my eye I saw Lezard fold his arms and sit frowning
at infinity.

Dr. Fooss lay back in a big, deeply padded armchair and closed his
prominent eyes. His pipe went out presently, and now and then he made
long-drawn nasal remarks, in German, too complicated for either Lezard or
for me to entirely comprehend.

"We must try to get her as far away from here as possible," mused Lezard.
"Is Oyster Bay _too_ far and too cruel?"

I pondered darkly upon the suggestion. But it seemed unpleasantly like
murder.

"Lezard," said I, "come, let us reason together. Now _what_ is woman's
besetting emotion?"

"Curiosity?"

"Very well; assuming that to be true, what--ah--quality particularly
characterizes woman when so beset."

"Ruthless determination."

"Then," said I, "we ought to begin my exciting the curiosity of Professor
Bottomly; and her ruthless determination to satisfy that curiosity should
logically follow."

"How," he asked, "are we to arouse her curiosity?"

"By pretending that we have knowledge of something hitherto undiscovered,
the discovery of which would redound to our scientific glory."

"I see. She'd want the glory for herself. She'd swipe it."

"She